Finding Your Place
by iWolf231
Summary: Balto may have saved the day, but there is still some animosity towards wolfdogs in Nome. This causes him to wonder if he has truly been accepted in town, or if it would be better to follow the call that he has felt since encountering the white wolf.
1. A New Day

Foreword

For the past year or so, I have been writing stories that have served as introductions to several ideas I have had surrounding the Balto movies. Now I am going to take some of those ideas and follow through with them to see where they can go. This story will be the first of many that will follow the events of my first fanfic "The First Day", but it also takes place a little bit before "A Second Chance". The town doesn't know what has happened to Steele yet, and Kaltag has just been pushed into replacing him, a job that he might not be ready for. While Balto may have saved the day, there are still those who don't like the idea of having a wolfdog hanging around their town, so - oops, I almost spoiled the story there. :P

Much like the stories preceding it, this one jumps between the past an the present to tell the backstory of the centric character. This time around, we're looking mainly at Kaltag to see why he, Nikki and Star joined up with Steele, and how they progressed into the trio that seemed to support him, but secretly dissed him behind his back. However, this will probably be the last story that also delves into character backstories, ditching the two stories in one format (unless I can think of something really compelling for Jenna) in order to focus on the present.

There are two things I have been grateful for while writing this. The first was my beta reader, Walto Disney (which is a name some Balto Sourcers may or may not recognize), who helped work out the kinks during the writing process and helped to alleviate any doubts I had about this story (I can sometimes be my own worst critic). The second thing I'm grateful for – Flash Drives. I did quite a bit of work on this during my spare period at school, and having a flash drive to quickly transfer it from school to home and back saved me a lot of time and effort. So, without further delay, I bring you my fourth Balto story – "Finding Your Place".

* * *

Chapter 1: A New Day

The first rays of the morning sun passed across the frozen shore, on which an old fishing trawler had been beached years ago. The light entered the wheelhouse, illuminating a young, brown canine. His tail twitched as he dreamed of innocent days gone by; of his days as a puppy when his mother was still with him…

"_Your father was a sled-dog too you know. In fact he was a lead dog, and in my eyes, he was the greatest champion of them all,"_ his mother, a snow-white wolf told him as they watched a group of sled dogs run on the beach for their training.

"_My dad was a dog?"_ he asked.

"_Yes, and you look so much like him too,"_ she replied, smiling.

"_But if he was a dog, and you're a wolf, then what am I?"_

"_You are both; a mix of the two. While you may come from two different worlds, that doesn't mean you are inferior to anyone. You have the strengths of both in you, and you can choose which path you wish to follow,"_ she replied.

The young pup looked back out onto the beach as the team passed by, and saw how their powerful legs propelled them at lightning speed. He wanted to run like the sled dogs. He wanted to run as fast - no, faster than any of them. He wanted to be a champion and to go on the adventures his father went on, _"They're so fast; I wanna be as fast as them! I'm gonna be a racing dog,"_ he said excitedly. _"I'm gonna be the fastest and the strongest one of all. I can be champion for you momma, just like dad."_

His mother smiled down at him, _"Tell you what, if you want to run around, why don't we race around the beach. A champion has to start somewhere…"_

As the sun continued to rise, its light started to pass over him, waking him from his dream. This canine's name was Balto, and those scattered memories were all that he had left of his long gone mother. It was for that reason that he treasured those memories; his mother had disappeared when he was a small pup, and he had never learned her fate. She left one morning to go out hunting and never returned. For most of his life, he had been an orphan, but there were times when it felt as though his mother was still with him, watching over him. However, after she left, one of the aspirations that made her so proud of him left with her. When Balto tried to enter the nearby town of Nome, he was pushed away by the humans and the dogs because of his half-breed status. He was an outcast because he was half-wolf, and that had convinced him that he really was worthless. After all, what kind of wolf would be a champion?

However, there was still one dog that saw through the labels put on him, and stuck with him through all the ups and downs of their youth. This dog was a female husky named Jenna, and while Balto had held feelings for her since he was quite young, his thoughts about his outcast status caused him to hold back his affections. It would take quite a while before he would finally admit his love for her, but in the end, it was worth it. In fact, that morning Balto woke up with her snuggled up to him, cozy in his thick chest fur. He had rested so that one leg was under her neck and another was over it, holding her in something resembling a hug through the night. Balto looked over at her, and saw that she wore a calm smile on her muzzle. Traveling down from her head and along her back was rust-coloured fur, which smoothly transitioned into a cream underside, ending with a fluffy tail curled towards her back. Topping it all off was a bright orange bandanna, which only complimented her appearance.

While his outcast status had caused him to hold back his feelings for her, he still held onto them in the hope that one day, he would get the chance to say those four powerful words to her: _"I love you Jenna."_ Balto had loved her for a long time, but it was only recently that he saw any hints that she felt the same towards him. It had been a week or two ago, and he had found her looking into the window of the hospital. Noticing that something was upsetting her, he came over to find out what it was. She told him that her human girl, Rosy, was sick. She had developed a deep cough, along with a fever. Wanting to help her find out more, he took her into the crawlspace underneath the hospital in the hopes of listening in on the human's conversation. However, while under there, he was distracted by his desire to impress her…

"_That's 'cause you're looking at the bowl half-empty. See this? It's the polar ice caps,"_ he said, pushing pieces of broken glass onto a mound of dirt.

"_Balto, those are broken bottles; and they're not half-empty, they're all empty," _she replied. However, he ignored her misgivings and continued his demonstration, knowing that this would be worth it.

"_The sun…" _he said, indicating the lamp shining through the grates in the floor.

"_Balto…"_

"_And… to the north," _he finished, moving away so that the light would shine through the broken glass. She turned and gasped as a colourful display was projected inside the small crawlspace, resembling the real northern lights.

"_The northern lights… Oh Balto you're right, it's beautiful," _she said, amazed by it all.

"_Yeah… beautiful,"_ he said, not looking at the beautiful lights, but at the beautiful husky beside him. She noticed his glance and turned towards him, starting to inch towards him. He would have nuzzled her and confessed his love there and then if fate hadn't intervened. Someone above them walked in front of the lamp, ending the light show, and they were quickly reminded of why they were down there in the first place. They listened to the doctor, but the news was grave. Rosy had come down with diphtheria, a very serious illness, and the doctor had run out of the antitoxin used to treat the disease. It was this information that prompted Balto to take action. He wanted to help Rosy and the other children get better, so he entered the race that would decide who would be on the sled team that would fetch the medicine.

It was at this moment that his childhood aspiration started to return. He would be a true sled dog, but this time, it wouldn't be for the glory of being a champion; it was to help those that he cared about. Unfortunately, despite coming out on top, he wouldn't get to run on the team. A large husky named Steele made sure that the humans would only see him as a vicious wolf, and he was left behind while Steele led the team. They made it to Nenana to pick up the medicine, but got lost in a fierce blizzard on the return trip, prompting Balto to make one more attempt to help. Going out and braving the elements, a nasty grizzly, a self-centered husky, an avalanche and a collapsing cave, Balto managed to lead the medicine back to Nome. On the last leg of the trip, he saw, projected on the mountainside past the town, the northern lights. It was a beacon, set up by Jenna to guide him home. Balto made it, howling his heart out, and the medicine was delivered safely. He was hailed as a hero, while Steele, who had tried to sabotage Balto's return trip in order to get rid of him, was exiled from the town.

"_Well Balto, you saved the day, defeated the bad guy, and got the girl of your dreams. Now what are you going to do?"_ he asked himself. Days after the fact, he still didn't have an answer to that question. While he had wanted to earn Jenna's affections for a long time now, he had never really thought of what he would do if that did happen. He had been an outcast for so long that he had always thought that Jenna would be out of reach, _"But she's not out of reach any more. She's right here, snuggled up against me," _he thought, and nuzzled her softly.

His nuzzle brought her out of her doze, and she slowly opened her eyes to see the brown wolfdog that she loved so much. To a stranger, he may have appeared wild, but she simply thought of him as 'rough around the edges'. Even as a pup, she had carried a bit of a crush on him. She saw past what others said about him, finding a kind dog who only wanted someone to care about him. He had many of the features of a wolf, such as the long, narrow muzzle and amber eyes, but those features only served to make him more handsome in her eyes. Plus, despite all the hardship he had gone through, he had still managed to hold onto his kindness, instead of becoming withdrawn and bitter. It was this that prompted him to go and find the medicine in order to save her human girl Rosy.

"Good morning love," she said.

"Morning Jenna," he replied, and continued to gaze at her.

"What? What are you looking at?" she asked.

"Just you," he replied, "I never thought that I would actually get to be with you, and yet here I am."

"So, what now for you?" she asked, "What will the hero of Nome do with his morning?"

He laid back down and groaned, "I don't know. Maybe I'll spend it with you, or maybe I can go into town," he said.

"Well, Rosy is coming home from the hospital later today. I'm sure it would mean a lot to her if you came too, considering what you did for her… and for me… " she trailed off.

"Jenna?" he asked, noticing her change in tone.

"I almost lost her Balto," she said, "I almost lost my girl." Balto held her closer to him and gave her a nuzzle to comfort her. Even though a disaster had been averted, Jenna would still remember how close they had all come. While Balto was racing home, she stayed by her girl's side and watched as she desperately clung to life. She hadn't believed Steele's story that Balto and the team had died at first, but as time went on, even her hope had started to fade. She watched every breath that Rosy took, praying that it wouldn't be her last.

"I thought I had lost her too," Balto replied, "After I went over that cliff, I was sure that I had failed Rosy and all the others. I was sure that I had failed you... until that wolf appeared," This was a part of the story that Jenna was very familiar with by now. After being led down the wrong path by Steele's false marks, Balto had gone over a cliff, but was given the courage to go on by a snow-white wolf that appeared out of nowhere. So far, she had been the only one that Balto had told about the wolf, mostly because that event was so bizarre. It was almost as though the wolf knew what was going on and was urging Balto to keep moving.

As Balto thought back to that moment, he remembered the sense of strength that wolf gave him as he howled with it. Never before in his life had he felt such a sense of purpose. It was as though something in his soul that had been confined was suddenly unleashed as he howled with the wolf, "That wolf made me feel a way I have never felt before Jenna," he continued, "It made me feel strong; it made me feel like a part of me had been found. It sounds strange, but it was as though it was calling for me to join it; wanting me to run in the wild with it. After all these years of being pushed away, there was finally something that was pulling me towards it, and when I answered that howl, it felt like I belonged with it; with the wolves," For the longest time, he had rejected his wolf side due to the teasing from the dogs in town, but when he let out that howl, he had made peace with the other half of himself. After embracing that, it gave him the strength and the inspiration to sniff his way home, but the memory of that event remained. A Pandora's box of sorts had been opened, and Balto was starting to wonder if he should try to explore his wolf side further… _"Maybe you should go for it, you might like what you find," _he thought, _"Besides, it would be a good alternative if things don't work out in town." _While it had seemed like the town had changed it's mind about Balto, there were still those that distrusted him because of his wolf side. _"I sure hope it doesn't come to that... but knowing my luck, I shouldn't hold my breath. Anything that went well in the past would only be short lived- all because of my wolf side... still, I should give them a chance..."_

"I'm glad that you've made peace with yourself," Jenna said, breaking Balto from his thoughts, "Though, I don't quite know what you mean when you say that you had failed me as well," Jenna said.

"Rosy was your girl, and if she died, I knew you would be devastated too. You were one of the few who believed in me then, and I couldn't let you down," he replied, "If I let you down, you might've never forgiven me, and I never would've have seen you smile again."

"My smile? I didn't know you liked my smile," she said.

"I don't just like it; I love it," he replied, "I love it because it always made me feel better, even when I was a pup. I figured that as long as you were smiling, everything was okay."

Hearing that, Jenna started to break out into a grin, and just like when they were pups, it instantly improved both of their moods. "So…" she started, "Is there anything else about me that you love? My smile can't be the only thing."

"Ah… well…" he stammered.

"Balto, you can say what you want about me. I love you and I want to know what you think," she replied, and leaned in to whisper in his ear, "Besides, there's no one else here except us. You can go into as much detail as you want," she said coyly. She was right; they were alone that morning. Balto's normal bunkmates, a Russian goose named Boris and two polar bear cubs named Muk and Luk had decided camp out on the beach that night so that Balto and Jenna could have some time to themselves.

"Oh Jenna, there are so many things that I love about you. I love your spirit, and your kind heart. I love how your bandanna makes you stand out in a crowd. I love… your beauty. I don't know how to describe it, but when I first saw you when you had grown up, I thought that you were the most beautiful dog I had ever seen. It was all of those things and more that caused me to fall in love with you," he said.

"Aha, I had a feeling that you had been admiring me from a distance," she said.

"Okay, I admit it. The big hero thinks about females just like regular dogs do," he said, causing Jenna to chuckle.

"Well, I'd be lying if I said that I didn't have the odd thought about you too Balto," she continued, "For some reason, I always felt better about you than some of the other males in town."

"That's probably because I'd didn't follow you to the creepy level that Steele did," Balto suggested, referring to Nome's former champion.

"That's true, and I thank you for that," she replied, "Though, I wonder what Steele is up to now. I half expected him to come back after only a day, begging for another chance."

"Steele isn't the type to beg; he's too proud. Remember, he wasn't willing to admit he had gotten the team lost on the serum run," he replied, "Despite what he did, I'm still not going to wish any harm to him. Wherever he is, I hope he's okay." She nodded before putting her head back down, and he rested his head on top of hers, letting the morning sun wash over them. A peaceful time like this would have been unheard of for Balto only a week ago, and he wanted to savor every moment of it. Having the sun warm his back while listening to Jenna's soft breathing was very soothing, and he wanted it to last as long as possible. He may have been the hero of Nome, but he still deserved a little personal time with the one he loved. Besides, the day had already been saved, so there was no rush to get up this morning.

"Hey Jenna, you were asking what I was going to do with my morning," he said softly, "I think I have an answer for you."

"What is it?"

He started to grin, "I'm going to sleep in."


	2. Leader, or Follower?

Chapter 2: Leader, or Follower?

The morning continued to rise, and soon the town of Nome was bustling with activity. People walked and talked with each other as they passed to and from the different businesses in town. In addition to the sounds of the people, there was the sounds of the many dogs that inhabited the town. Nome was a northern town and the best way to get around during the winter was by dogsled. For this reason, many people had their own team of dogs, or they knew someone who did. From the racers with professional teams of at least half a dozen dogs, to a small child only needing one to pull them along on their small sled, owning one or more dogs was a way of life in the north. Out of all the sled teams that lived in the town, there was one that was respected and admired more than others. That team was Alaska's championship racing team, whom had won the Trans-Alaskan Derby, the biggest race of the winter season four years in a row. However, recent circumstances had required a change in leadership of that team, and that morning, the dogs had gathered in the old, unused mill to congratulate the new lead dog.

"Congrats on the promotion Kal!"

"You'll do great Kaltag!"

"Aw, thanks you guys," the tan Chinook replied, "Though, the final decision was with my owner, so you should thank him too."

"Don't be so modest Kaltag," one of the dogs said, "You wouldn't have been picked if you weren't up to the job."

"So Kal, how does it feel to be the top dog of your team?" a young border collie asked.

"To be honest, it's the grandest, the most impressive, the most dignified, the most-"

"He loves it!" a small husky sitting beside Kaltag cried out. The whole room burst out laughing and Kaltag affectionately rubbed him on the head with his paw. The husky that cried out was named Star, and he always liked to butt in whenever Kaltag went on a tangent like that. Until recently, Kaltag had never really appreciated how easily Star could sum it up in one sentence.

"Though, with the promotion comes the responsibility too," an old St. Bernard named Doc put in, "After all, you don't want to lose your winning streak do you?"

"Hey, wes managed to get the medicine back through that blizzard without our old lead dog, so wes could easily keep up with other teams," a stocky chow named Nikki replied. Nikki was another one of Kaltag's teammates, and was actually his first friend, dating back to when they were still in training to be sled dogs.

"Yeah, if we could get home from that without Steele's help, then I'm sure that we can win any race," Star put in. The dog that Star was referring to was the former lead dog of Nome's championship team, a purebred husky named Steele. While Steele was quite competent in a race, the conditions for the team's next mission would prove to be overwhelming for him. Shortly after their most recent race ended, it became clear that a recent outbreak of diphtheria was starting to reach critical levels. To make matters worse, the doctor had depleted his supply of the antitoxin used to treat the disease. Ships couldn't travel in the frozen sea, and there was no way to fly the medicine in by air. The closest that the rail lines could get was the town of Nenana, so that left one last method of transport: dogsled.

They would need a team that would be able to make the run to Nenana and back as quickly as possible. So, the fastest dogs from town were put together, and Steele led them on their mission of mercy. They made it to Nenana with no problems, but by the time they were picking up the medicine, a fierce blizzard had started to blow in. Not wanting to waste any time, they quickly set out to return to Nome. However, the storm only grew worse and the driving snow reduced visibility to near zero. Normally when faced with conditions like these, a dog team would trust the senses of their lead dog. The mark of a good lead dog is the ability to navigate in adverse weather, and they thought that Steele would be able to lead them through it. Unfortunately, that was far from the truth. Steele had no idea where he was going in that storm, and ended up leading the team off the trail, causing them to get lost in the mountains. With the low visibility, they ended up sliding down an icy hill and crashing onto a ledge. Their musher was knocked unconscious, and the team had no idea where they were. Unfortunately, Steele made no effort to get the team together and try to find their way home, _"That was probably the first sign that he wasn't all he was cracked up to be,"_ Kaltag thought.

"However, it wasn't just us," Kaltag said, "Remember, Balto was the one that led us home that day."

Countless hours passed for the team, when they suddenly heard someone else sliding down the hill. It was none other than Balto, a stray wolfdog that the dogs in town knew all to well. However, his presence would not be welcomed by all of them, especially Steele. Being a half-wolf hybrid was something that most of the dogs looked down on, as they had all heard the stories of violent wolves and wolf hybrids who would turn on unsuspecting dogs, sometimes humans as well. This had led many in the town to distrust Balto at first sight, but at that moment, most of the team were willing to put up with Balto if it meant that they could get home. Balto had left marks on trees on his way out, with the intention of following them straight back to Nome. However, Steele was adamant about refusing Balto's help, and he started to strike Balto to keep him away from the medicine, but his blind actions were starting to endanger their cargo, as Steele knocked over the crate containing the fragile jars of antitoxin on one of his lunges. By now, even his own teammates were starting to plead with him to accept Balto's help, but he didn't listen. On his next lunge, Steele missed his mark and ended up plunging over a cliff.

With no one else to lead them and time running out, the team got themselves together and let Balto take the lead harness, unaware that Steele was not out of the picture yet. He crawled back up the cliff and proceeded to sabotage Balto's marks, causing the team to go off course again, almost losing the medicine and their new lead over a cliff. Fortunately, the medicine survived the fall and Balto was able to pull it back up. The team got back on the trail, but it was soon apparent that something about Balto was different; he seemed to have a greater sense of purpose and direction, _"I wonder what changed about Balto? He didn't say anything about it, he just ran." _Despite the false trails, Balto was able to sniff out the true path home. The medicine was delivered and the children were saved.

"It was Balto that led us home, as he was able to sniff out the proper trail," Kaltag said, and most of the dogs murmured in agreement.

"Hey, if that's the case, then why didn't your human take him in?" the young border collie asked, "I bet Balto would make a great lead for our championship team."

"I really don't know why he didn't, though I'm sure he has his reasons," Soon, Kaltag was swamped by countless other dogs, all wanting to give him their praise as well. The pressing crowd was starting to make him feel uncomfortable, so he quickly excused himself and trotted out of the mill to get some air. As much as he enjoyed the praise, he could only handle so much at once, _"Wow, who knew that little ol' me would become the new lead dog. I guess I never really thought much about my own skill and my accomplishments. Then again, anything I did would always be credited to Steele…"_

"Hey Kaltag!" a voice rang out, breaking the Chinook from his thoughts. He turned and saw that it belonged to a smoke-grey husky, who was followed by a few other dogs, including a female Samoyed and a couple of malamutes. Kaltag knew that the husky who had called out to him was Spitz, but he didn't know his friends as well, "Kal, I just wanted to say my congratulations as well. I'm sure that you'll make our town proud," he said.

"Thanks Spitz," he replied.

"Truth be told, I'm happy that it was you who was given the job and not that lobo," Spitz said, "Could you imagine a half-breed like that actually leading our championship team?"

"I don't have to; I lived it," Kaltag said flatly. He knew that Spitz was one of those dogs who still distrusted Balto, all because of his half-wolf breeding, "Is that all you wanted to say Spitz?"

"No, not exactly," Spitz said, "Kal, you're the one in charge now, and while you may want to repay Balto for his great deed, you must remember that he is still a wild wolf."

"He's only half wolf," Kaltag put in.

"Whatever. My point is that I don't think you should jump to trust him so easily," Spitz replied, "Take a little time and see if he really is as great as you think he is."

"I don't have to. I already know that he's a great dog," Kaltag replied.

"If he's so great, then why didn't your owner make him the new lead dog?" Spitz asked.

"I – I don't know," Kaltag replied, "It's probably because he's still a stray, and living as a stray tends to make a dog a little… uncivilized," Kaltag said, "Being part wolf probably doesn't help him out that much either."

"Ah yes, it can sometimes be hard to resist the call of the wild," Spitz said, causing a few dogs to snicker, "Besides, he may have gotten you home, but he didn't run the longest stretch. He only met you part-way on the return trip. It was you guys that ran the most."

"I guess you're right... in a real race he'd have to go much farther than that to win," Kaltag continued, "Plus, there's a lot more pressure as we'd be going up against multiple teams that have the best training. When it comes to racing, he has no more real experience than Dixie," Kaltag said, causing Spitz and the others to chuckle. The thought of Dixie, who was a rather small dog, trying to lead a sled team with her short legs was quite ridiculous.

"Didn't you also say that Balto took you on more than one detour on the way home?" the female Samoyed asked.

Kaltag knew she was referring to the parts where Balto had gone down the wrong trail, and the part where he had taken them into an ice cave. However, the former had been to to Steele's interference, while the latter was to escape from a deadly avalanche, "Well, yeah he did, but-"

"But that's not the mark of a good lead dog is it? Carla here raises a good point; a good lead stays on the path and avoids wasting time, " Spitz said, "Plus, there would still be some of his wolf instincts that you'd have to deal with, such as the urge to chase down prey."

"Yeah, I suppose there is that," Kaltag said, "It would be nuts if he decided to go after something like a rabbit during a race," At this, they all briefly imagined Balto turning the team around just to go after one small rabbit, and the image itself was so ridiculous, that they all burst into laughter. "It would be the craziest, the weirdest, the most insane-"

"It wouldn't happen," a stern voice cut in. Kaltag knew whose it was, and the realization made him feel as though the wind had been knocked out of him. It was Balto's, and when Kaltag turned, he saw that he had a very cross look on his face, "If I had known that I'd be welcomed like this today, I would've slept in for the entire day," he grumbled to Jenna, who was with him.

"Yeah, maybe you should have," Spitz sneered back, "Or maybe you should be out howling with your pack?"

"My pack is right here Spitz… or so I thought," he replied, giving Kaltag an icy stare. The Chinook knew he was in trouble, and kept his mouth shut. He didn't want to blurt out anything that would aggravate Balto further, so he decided to stay silent.

"Oh, don't feel so bad about what Kaltag said Balto; it's only the truth," Spitz said, "Besides, we can say what we want. It's a free country, and in case you haven't noticed, you're not exactly in charge around here."

"Oh, and you are?" Balto replied sarcastically.

"No, but I could be if it's clear our current leadership isn't up to the job," Spitz said, "Didn't you hear Balto? Kaltag was promoted to the lead position of our championship team today, making him the top dog around here."

"Actually it was yesterday, but the party was this morning," Carla continued, "Weren't you invited Balto?"

"No I wasn't," Balto said flatly, shooting another glance at Kaltag. The Chinook mentally kicked himself; in his euphoria from being promoted, he had forgotten to tell Balto about it.

"Oh? Well I guess that shows just how important you really are to us," Carla put in, "Though it would be very odd to invite a stray."

"An excellent point Carla," Spitz continued, "It's funny how despite that fact that you were the one to lead the team home during the serum run, you weren't picked for the lead. I'm sure you're wondering why that is."

"I am, but I've heard a few theories... such as how I'm an **uncivilized **stray, or how I'm **inexperienced**," he replied, causing Kaltag to cringe. Balto had heard him say that; he had heard almost everything, "I guess getting home in time and being able to navigate your way through a blizzard doesn't cut it for a sled dog, does it?" he barked, with a hint of venom in his voice.

"I think it's simply because it's kind of hard to have a sled dog who isn't really a dog," Spitz shot in, causing his group to laugh, "I'm curious Balto, even after your great deed, have any of the humans tried to take you in?" he asked.

"No," he replied.

"See, they haven't tried to take you in because they don't want you," Spitz replied, "Who would want a half-wolf in their home anyways?"

"He may not have had anyone come to him yet, but that doesn't mean it won't happen," Jenna shot in, "I'm sure that at some point there will be someone who would jump at the chance to take a hero in. I know I'd like to have him in my home."

"Really? Why would you want a lowly half-breed like him Jenna?" Carla snickered, "You could do so much better than him in the male department."

"Heh, I'd be willing to show a pretty girl like her a nice time," another husky chuckled, causing Balto to snarl. Normally he was able to keep his cool in situations like this, but if it involved Jenna, he tended to be a little more reactive.

"Uh oh, looks like you hit a nerve there," Spitz said, "If you keep it up, the town hero might lose his temper." Balto knew that Spitz was only trying to provoke him, and that was something he wasn't going to give him. He collected himself and stared the husky straight in the eye.

"Spitz, just walk away and leave us be," he said, "I don't have any quarrel with you and I don't want to start one."

"Alright, we'll go, but it won't stop us from knowing what you are," Spitz said as he and his group started to turn away. Before he left, he had only one more thing to say, "Don't get too comfortable half-breed. You may be the town hero now, but soon your fifteen minutes of fame will be up. When that happens, you might want to think twice about waltzing into town." With that, he turned and walked to follow his friends in town.

Kaltag breathed a sigh of relief when Spitz was finally gone, but he still knew that he would have some explaining to do, "Look, Balto I-"

"Why?" was all Balto had to say, "Why, after all I did for you and the team, would you go and say things like that about me?"

"I – I didn't know you were there," Kaltag replied, "Spitz and I just started talking and I thought that you'd never hear any of it."

"So you thought that you could just talk about me behind my back?" Balto snapped, "Is there anything else that you're not telling me?"

"Like how you became the lead dog of your team?" Jenna continued, "Kaltag, you should've told us. We would've loved to come in to congratulate you."

"Yeah Kal, it's not like I'd be bitter about it; you're a great sled dog," Balto continued, "I'd love to run on a team with you again – but I guess that you feel differently. After all, who'd want to run with a wild, inexperienced half-breed?"

"No, I didn't mean it that way," Kaltag replied, "Granted, you would need a little training to get used to the conditions, but I'm sure that you'd do just fine with keeping up with us."

"Really, 'cause that's not what we heard," Jenna shot back, "I thought you were going to have a fresh start, but I guess you'd rather stick with your old habits."

"Yeah Kaltag, you're the top dog now. You can take charge and make things right…. but I guess you're more comfortable with following the status quo than being a leader." Balto finished before turning around and continuing up the street with Jenna.

Kaltag felt terrible about what had happened. He had promised that he would change, but Spitz had managed to get him back into making fun of Balto. He simply let Spitz take charge of the moment, while Kaltag remained a bystander... just like he always used to be, _"It may as well have been Steele doing the talking instead of Spitz,"_ Kaltag thought. When he looked back on all those times that he had been a bystander, he remembered how he usually did it just so that he could fit in with others. While Kaltag may have been an accepted dog now, it hadn't always been that way. Balto didn't know it, but he and Kaltag had a shared experience from their youth; they had both known what it was like to be picked on simply because they were different.

_

* * *

Three years ago_

"Move your feet goldie! Watch the trail and not the scenery," the young dog shouted at the tan Chinook running in front of him.

"I am moving my feet!" he shouted back, "I'm moving them the swiftest, the fastest, the quickest-"

"I don't care if they can turn into wings; you're not moving like a true husky," he replied, "Oh wait, that's because you're not a husky! You're just some kind of experiment aren't you Kaltag?"

Kaltag scowled at this. Since day one, he had been forced to deal with hostility from the other rookie sled dogs. Part of it came from the fact that he liked to talk a lot, and he hated being interrupted, _"I swear, the next dog who cuts me off is getting smacked upside the head," _he thought. The other reason for the hostility was due to his breeding. Chinooks were still a relatively new breed of sled dog, and there were only a handful in existence. Chinook's were bred using traits from a variety of breeds, and were still considered by most to be a work in progress at the time.

"Hey Zeke, hes may not be a husky, but at least he's not one of those rabid wolves out dere," a stocky, red furred dog beside him put in, albeit with a very thick accent.

"Sorry, I can't understand you Nikki," Zeke continued, "Why don't you try getting all the fur out of your mouth, puffball!"

"All of you, enough of that! Trust me, you don't want me to come back there," the lead dog snapped at them, and all of the young dogs went quiet. They knew better than to get on the bad side of one of the older dogs. This dog in particular was widely respected by the team. His name was Cain, and up until recently, he had been the lead dog of the main team. However, age had started to catch up to him, and while he wasn't fit to lead a racing team, he could still be used as a mentor to the rookies during their training. The runs were kept short, due to the young dogs not having developed their endurance yet, and the remainder of the trip passed in silence. Finally, when they returned to their musher's home, the young dogs stopped to take a breather.

"Hey you," Kaltag said to the red dog beside him, "Thanks for sticking up for me back there."

"It's no problem," he replied, "You'res Kaltag right? I'm Nikki."

"Well Nikki, it's great to know that at least one other dog isn't as bad as some of the others," Kaltag said. Even though he had made one new friend, the sting of Zeke's words still remained. Kaltag simply wanted to be one of the sled dogs, but Zeke's attitude always made him feel like he stuck out, and that he might not be good enough to be a great sled dog. While the other dogs scurried off to the back yard for some fun, Kaltag and Nikki stayed around the front porch, where their only company was a large, black and white husky. Kaltag didn't know the other dog's name, as there were still a few of the older dogs that he hadn't met. The husky appeared to be taking a nap, so Nikki and Kaltag thought that they could continue their talk undisturbed.

"Yeah, Zeke must think that hes the king of the world," Nikki said, "Just yesterday I heard him boasting about how he's going to be the next lead dog on the team."

"He's the most stuck up, the most self absorbed, the worst-"

"Ah, quit your griping ya pup. Zeke won't be the lead anytime soon," they heard a deep voice grumble behind them. They turned around and saw the husky they were with wasn't as asleep as they thought he was, "If you want to be good sled dogs, you should grow a spine and deal with your problems yourself."

"Well, wes could always get help from Cain," Nikki suggested, "After all, he's tried to help us out before."

At this, the older husky let out a sharp laugh, "Ha! You actually think someone like Cain will be able to help you? He's nothing but a senile old bat."

"Are you sure? Cain seems to have a pretty good head on his shoulders," Kaltag said.

"You think so, eh? Let me ask you something kid; has Cain ever been able to actually stop Zeke from pushing you around?" the husky asked.

"Well, he does tell Zeke off… but he always comes back later," Kaltag admitted.

"In other words, Cain's done diddly squat for you," the older husky said, "Besides, tattling only makes you look weaker. It makes it look like you can't fight your own battles. If you want Zeke to not mess with you, you're going to have to take matters into your own paws. C'mon, we'll go right now and show Zeke what you really mean," he said before getting up. Once he was up, Kaltag could see that he had a larger collar than the standard sled dog, with gold studs placed around it. The older husky took the lead while Kaltag and Nikki followed, "What are your names, rookies?"

"I'm Kaltag, and this is Nikki," Kaltag replied.

"Well, Kaltag and Nikki, I'm Steele," the husky said, "And if you two want to be something on this team, you'll stick with me."


	3. Another Blow

Chapter 3: Another Blow

_Three Years Earlier_

Kaltag and Nikki followed Steele towards the backyard, and soon they heard Spitz's voice coming from behind a snowdrift, along with another voice. As they got closer, they could tell that the conversation between them was far from friendly, "So, what's a scrawny little guy like you doing here with us sled dogs?" he taunted.

"Hey, I'm going to be a sled dog too," the other voice replied nervously.

"I've got news for you pal, only the big dogs are going to be sled dogs, not the little pups," Zeke shot back.

"I'm not a puppy!" the other voice protested, "I'm just smaller than you, that's all. If you don't stop making fun of me, I'm going to tell on you!"

However, this only caused Zeke to burst out laughing, "Oh, is baby Star going to tell his mommy on me?" he asked mockingly.

"He's doing it again," Kaltag growled, "Acting like he's superior to anyone smaller or different."

Steele noticed that Kaltag was starting to grow more aggressive as they listened to Zeke taunt another rookie, and knew that Kaltag was close to going over the edge, "Yeah, doesn't that just grind your gears, hearing him do that with no one to stop him?" he asked, and Kaltag nodded, "It's enough to make you want to knock him around and show him who's better," he continued, getting another nod from Kaltag, "Well then why don't you just let it all out? He won't stop until someone takes him down a few pegs, so you may as well do it now. Don't worry, I've got your back on this one." While Kaltag had been adverse to fighting before, the anger towards Zeke had been slowly building up, with Steele's prompting acting as the release. He wanted to bite, scratch and do whatever he could to pay back Zeke for all the taunting he had to go through. Quickly, Kaltag and Nikki jumped out from behind the drift. The other voice had been coming from a small, grey husky; Kaltag recognized him as another one of the new recruits. Zeke's head snapped up when he heard them jump in, but when he saw them, he scowled.

"Oh look, it's chatty and tubby," he sneered, "What do you two weirdos want?" However, his scowl soon turned to an expression of fear when Steele came out shortly after them, "St-Steele? What are you doing here boss?"

"Well Zeke, from what I've heard, you've been causing a little trouble for some of the rookies," Steele replied.

"No, no, I'm not causing trouble," Zeke replied. Kaltag had to admit that he was starting to enjoy watching Zeke get nervous; he was no longer the cocky guy that he hated.

"Oh yes you are Zeke. In fact, I think these two have a bit of a bone to pick with you," Steele said.

"No, no... I was joking around with them," Zeke stammered, but Steele ignored him.

"Get 'em," Steele said, and Kaltag was the first to strike. He lowered his head and charged, head-butting Zeke right in the chest. Zeke was knocked over and Nikki charged at him next. Zeke managed to dodge him, but in doing so, he turned his back on Star, who also wanted his fair share of justice after being made fun of. The smaller husky lunged and bit Zeke's tail, causing him to howl and dart away. The three rookies gave chase, with Steele following closely behind. Soon, Kaltag had caught up with Zeke and jumped on the husky's back, knocking him down. Star and Nikki were quick to join in, and soon the four pups were a blur of fur, teeth and claws. Steele stayed back, watching the scene with a fiendish grin. If there was one thing that he loved, it was pitting rookie sled dogs against each other. It was not only fun, but easy too, _"Heh, maybe I should keep those two around; they'd be good for cases where I don't want to get my paws dirty, and they seem to get worked up quite easily. __However, what's a little entertainment without an audience?" _he thought. "Hey guys, there's a fight out here! Come quick!" he shouted, and he was soon joined by most of the dogs on the team.

They formed a circle around the fight, so that each of them could witness the rookies fight each other. Most were cheering, and some were even laughing, but Kaltag was oblivious to it all. He was more concerned with grabbing Zeke and biting his ear, despite his pleas for mercy. However, their fight would be short-lived, as their human owner soon heard the commotion coming from the yard. He was quick to arrive and shoo most of the dogs away, but he had to physically yank the other three off of Zeke by grabbing onto their collars, "That's enough you two! I can't have my greenhorns fighting each other like this!" he shouted, and they calmed down, though they still glared at each other. When their owner finally did let them go, Zeke scampered off while Kaltag, Nikki and Star stayed put. Kaltag had a few nicks and cuts from the fight, but being able to get back at Zeke had been a very potent experience. After being on the receiving end of his bullying for the past few months, it felt good to finally be on the giving end.

Their owner walked back into his house, and Steele approached them, "Well, I've got to say that you sure handled yourself well there," he started, "How did it feel to finally show him whose boss?"

To Kaltag it felt like a million different things, all of them good. For once, he felt like he had some power instead of being just another rookie, "It was the greatest, the most extraordinary, the most impressive, the most-"

"We beat him!" Star cried out, but unfortunately, he didn't know that Kaltag hated being interrupted when expressing himself. So, the smaller husky was greatly surprised when Kaltag swung his paw up and brought it crashing down on his head, knocking him down.

"Hey, why'd you do that?" Star protested.

"I don't like being interrupted," Kaltag said, as Steele started to laugh.

"Heh, I think I'm starting to like you Kal; you don't take guff from anybody. You're not so bad either Nikki," he continued, turning towards the chow, "You Chows certainly aren't a bunch of pushovers."

"Hey, what about me?" Star cut in.

"Ehh, you were okay; you at least managed to hold your own," Steele replied, "You three seem like a good bunch of dogs. How about this, any time Zeke or another dog gives you any trouble, just give me a bark and we'll all go out and get them together?" he suggested. Kaltag really liked this deal; this way, no one would dare pick on him. Steele seemed really nice too; he didn't make fun of his breeding or his habit of going on tangents.

"I'd like that. Thank you," he replied, and Steele left them. After weeks of feeling insecure about himself due to his breeding, Kaltag had finally found a way to make up for that. No longer was he the odd one out; now he could show that he was a tough dog too, worthy of being on a sled team, _"Wow, if I knew that pushing back would've worked that well, I would've done it a long time ago,"_ he thought. Nikki and Star seemed to be very excited about this new friendship as well.

"How in the world did you guys manage to get on the good side of our lead dog?" Star asked.

"What are yous talking about?" Nikki asked.

"Didn't you two know; Steele is the lead dog of our team," Star replied, "He's already won our team the Trans-Alaskan Derby, with the prize being the gold studded collar that he was wearing."

This news only added to Kaltag's excitement. Their lead dog would make for a powerful ally, which meant that no one would be able to touch them, _"If I'm friends with Alaska's champion dog, then no one will ever make fun of me for being a Chinook again," _he thought, _"Finally, I have a way where I can belong with the team."_

Since that day, Kaltag, Nikki and Star stuck with Steele, because being with him gave them a sense of belonging. At the time, Kaltag didn't think that there could be any negative consequences with this decision. All he wanted was to be able to be able to fit in with the crowd, and siding with Steele made that happen. He didn't know yet that there could be a dark side to falling into Steele's crowd.

_

* * *

Present Day_

Balto continued walking at a very brisk pace, the previous exchange with Spitz and Kaltag still fresh in his mind, _"I can't believe what Kaltag did back there. I thought that he had learned from his experiences with Steele, but he just stood to the side, like he always used to. I guess when you're in charge, you don't have to change a thing about yourself. He'll just do what he's always done and flow with the crowd in order to keep his popularity," _he thought as he walked with Jenna at his side.

Jenna could tell that Balto was very troubled by what had happened, and tried to alleviate his sour mood, "Balto, are you okay?" she asked.

"I was, until I heard what Kaltag really thinks of me," Balto replied, "For a moment, I thought that he had decided to change his mind about me, but I must have been wrong about that."

"Kaltag was only being encouraged by Spitz," Jenna said, "I'm sure that Kaltag will be perfectly fine as long as you keep that vile dog away from him."

"Maybe... but the fact that they're still picking on me isn't what's really bothering me; it's the fact that no one seems to be doing anything about it," he replied, "They're just letting all the Spitz's of the world run amok, doing nothing to question them."

"I see," she replied, "However, while Spitz may be very vocal, he doesn't speak for everyone. I'm still with you on this."

"Thank you Jenna. I know Spitz is just one dog, but what if what he said is right? What if my popularity is only fleeting, and everything will go back to the way it was before?" he asked.

"Don't think that. You did such a wonderful thing for this town and you'll always have those who will be grateful for it," she replied.

"They may be grateful now, but how long will they remain that way?" he asked, "For so long I was the outcast of this town and I'm getting the feeling that will be a hard thing to shake; for both me and them."

"I'm not so sure about that," she replied, "You saved so many lives, and I'm sure that you'll always be remembered for that. I bet they'll still be talking about you well into the next century. They'll write stories and songs about you, continuing the tale of your heroism."

"I'm not holding my breath for that," Balto said, "For most of my life, whenever something started to go right, it would always come crashing down on me."

"_Oh Balto, why did your life have to turn you into such a pessimist. Change doesn't happen overnight, it comes gradually. For the longest time, I couldn't be with you like I am now, but over time, we grew closer and now here we are,"_ she thought, "Balto, you have to give them some time. Most of the town is still recovering from the shock of the diphtheria outbreak," she said, "Besides, you're forgetting that there is one human who has always had a liking for you, even when you were an outcast."

"Rosy?" he said, and Jenna nodded.

"She's always had a soft spot for you, from back to when we were small pups. She has always seen you as a good dog," she said.

"Yeah, she has," he said, _"Rosy would probably jump at the chance to have me in her home, but would her parents share the feeling?"_ Balto thought, _"They've always been wary around me because I'm part wolf, but maybe saving their daughter will finally change their minds. If not… then maybe my acceptance really is fleeting." _Soon, his train of thought ended when they reached Jenna's home. Her owners would return at any minute with their daughter, and Balto and Jenna had settled on a simple way to greet Rosy on her return. By using the doggie door in the back, they could sneak in and wait in the front hall for them. That way, the first things that Rosy would see when she returned would be the two dogs that she loved the most. Normally, Balto was wary of going into someone else's home unannounced, but Jenna assured him that she had her invitation, and that her family would probably be glad to see the dog that had saved their little girl, along with so many others. After all, who wouldn't want to have a famous dog in their own home?

Pushing the wooden flap out of the way, Balto poked his head in the kitchen and took a look around. It had been years since he had been in here, and that was from a time when, for a brief moment, he had thought he had found a place to call his own. As a young pup, he had the chance to come into a home, and could have lived with Jenna and Rosy. Unfortunately, reality came crashing down on him when Jenna's family found out about his half-wolf breeding. Ever since then, Rosy's parents, in particular her father, had been wary about letting their daughter near him.

"_I'm sorry, but we can't have a wolf in our house…"_

"_He might bite ya honey, he's part wolf…"_

Her father had seemed a little nicer to him after he returned with the medicine, even bringing him over to her so that she could give him a hug. However, Balto was still a little nervous; would he still be as kind now, or would he be like Spitz and have reverted to his distrusting ways already? Balto walked through the kitchen and into the living room, taking a moment to look around. The layout hadn't changed at all since he had last been in here, and there were a few scattered items still on the floor. A quick sniff identified them as Rosy's; they were her toys. They must have been left behind when she was taken to the hospital after her parents noticed her deep, hacking cough, along with her fever; an early sign of the diphtheria that she had fallen ill with.

As he trotted through the room towards the front hall, he started to wonder how things might have been if they hadn't found out about his breeding. He could have been accepted into their home, and wouldn't have to live in a creaky, old boat. He would be able to wake up here every day, probably next to the dog he loved so much, or curled up next to Rosy. Instead of scrounging through the scraps from the butcher, he would have been fed good food regularly. He could have spent his days trotting along at Rosy's side for walks, or playing fetch with her and Jenna. He could have had the life of a dog; a life of acceptance, _"All I wanted was to be accepted with the humans, but they never accepted me, all because of my wolf side,"_ he thought, _"It was that one fact that made me so reviled by the town, even I started to hate that part of me."  
_

Soon, he entered the front hall and sat himself beside Jenna in front of the door. She noticed that he was taking the time to look around, "So, what's it like for you to be back here after all this time?" Jenna asked.

"To be honest, I really don't know yet. On the one side, there's all the fun I had with you and Rosy," he replied, "But on the other side, there's the fact that her dad kicked me out and has never really liked me since."

"Well, maybe he'll have a change of heart after this," she suggested.

"Maybe," he said, and despite his reservations, if he did get another chance to be accepted, he wouldn't hesitate to take it. At this point, it didn't matter where, as long as it was somewhere. A few moments later, they heard footsteps coming up the front steps, followed by the jingling of keys and then scratching of the key being inserted into the lock. Balto took in a deep breath as he prepared for what was coming next, _"Here we go."_

The door was opened just a crack before Jenna stuck her head out to greet her family, "Jenna!" Rosy squealed as she hugged her dog, and Balto heard her father chuckle as he opened the door completely, revealing that Jenna was not the only one waiting for them. "Balto!" Rosy cried when she saw him too, and came in to give him a big hug. He returned it by nuzzling her face and licking her ears, causing her to giggle.

"Balto? How did he get in?" Rosy's father asked, surprised, "What is he doing here?"

"Hehe, you came over to say hi didn't you boy?" Rosy asked, "It's sure been a while since you've been here, but I'd be great if you could stay for good."

"_Oh, I'd love nothing more,"_ he thought.

"_Please let him stay; please let my love stay," _Jenna thought as well.

"Well dad, what do you say?" Rosy asked, "Could Balto stay with us?"

"I – I don't think that would be the best thing honey," her father said, causing three hearts to fall instantly.

"What? Why?" she asked, "Balto's a good boy and he should have a home after being on his own for so long. Besides, he's the town hero!"

"Look, I know you like Balto and all," her mother started, "And what he did for all of us was wonderful, but your father and I talked about it. We don't feel comfortable having a stray like him in our home," she replied, "Besides, he probably doesn't know how to act in a home. He may cause trouble down the road."

"No he won't. He might not know everything, but maybe we could teach him," Rosy protested.

"Rosy, we've made our decision," her father said, "I'm sorry, but Balto will have to stay out."

"No," she said as she held onto him tighter. Jenna too had started to whine, and rubbed against Balto to try to show them how she felt too. However, their efforts would not convince him, as he grabbed Balto by the scruff of his neck, and Rosy was forced to let go while her father led him away. Unable to take this injustice, Rosy stormed off, sniffling while her mother followed to try to console her. Balto whined and tried pull away, but the man's grip was firm, and kept pulling him.

"_No, please give me another chance. I saved your daughter's life for goodness sake and this is how you repay me? You were so willing to let me see her after I came back, and yet you're dragging me away now? What changed?"_ Balto thought as he was led out of the house and onto the street. He was left there while Rosy's father went back inside, shutting the door behind him. As Balto stood there, he realized that he had already seen this coming, _"I knew it, I knew that it wouldn't be that easy; humans don't just take dogs off the streets into their homes, let alone half-wolf strays. I may have been the hero, but that doesn't change what I am. I'm still a wolfdog, and that's how most of the people in this town will always see me," _he thought as he started to walk down the street, _"Maybe Spitz was right, maybe my fifteen minutes of fame are over. I had my fun, but after that, it's back to being the same old wolfdog; the same old outcast."_ As he walked away, he failed to notice the dog that had crept out the back door and was following him.

Soon, Balto had trotted down an alley not far from Rosy's house, and lay down behind a stack of lumber as many conflicting emotions started to bubble up. There was the disappointment and sadness, but it was mixed with frustration and anger. It was a combination that he was all to familiar with by now, as it was how he usually felt whenever Steele or another dog picked on him, _"I saved the day but everything still feels the same. They still treat me like an outcast."_

He heard footsteps crunching along the ground, and he perked his ears up to listen. The footsteps approached the lumber pile, and soon, he saw Jenna poke her face into his hiding spot, "Balto, are you okay?" she asked.

"What do you think?" he replied solemnly as she came over to sit beside him. She nuzzled him to comfort him, but it had little effect on his mood.

"Balto, I'm so sorry about what happened there," she started.

"You don't have to be sorry," he replied, "In the end it wasn't your call."

"I know, but I wish that there was some way that I could convince them. Humans can be so stubborn about change sometimes," she said, "Why won't they see that you're a good dog?"

"They won't because in their eyes, I'm still half-wolf," Balto said, "I could do many good deeds; heck, I could even save the president's life, but it still wouldn't matter because I'd still be half-wolf."

"That shouldn't be what decides who you are Balto. They should look at your actions instead of your breeding. Then they would see that you were good, even before all those kids got sick," she replied.

"Are you sure? Face it Jenna, I wasn't exactly a saint in the past, and most of what people remember of me are the times when I got into fights with the other dogs," he replied.

Jenna thought for a moment, and remembered that there had been a few instances where Balto had gotten into fights, but it was mostly because he had been provoked. However, that didn't stop him from being labeled a dangerous mutt, "There is that, but most of those weren't your fault. If you were simply left alone, you were fine; then again, no one wanted to leave you alone... I guess what my parents said was true; life can be very unfair at times."

"Tell me about it; it's the story of most of my life," he replied.

"Well, if my owners won't take you in, then there has to be someone who would," she said, "Maybe someone else in town would take you in? It may not be with Rosy, but at least you'd have somewhere to belong. Everyone should belong somewhere in this world, and that includes you. I'm sure that somewhere out there is a place where you'll be accepted for who you are. It just might not be here."

"Maybe you're right. Maybe my place is somewhere else," he said.

Balto and Jenna gave each other another nuzzle before they heard a voice call out, "Jenna! Where are you? Come in girl!" It was Rosy's father.

"I'm sorry Balto, I really must go. I hope you have more luck elsewhere," she said before dashing off. As he watched her depart, he remembered that this was how their meetings had always ended in the past. She would always have to be called away by her owners, and he was never allowed to follow. Even recently, before the serum run, their time had been cut short by the calls of her owner. After all, she was a housedog, who was supposed to follow her human owners.

"_In the end, we'll always be from two different worlds. She'll still be a housedog and I'll still be a wild half-breed. What kind of life would that be for us?"_ he thought,_ "Always having to cut our time short, never being able to spend all the time we wanted together. That's no way to live with each other,"_ he thought before turning the other way and trotting out of the alley.


	4. Seeking Guidance

Chapter 4: Seeking Guidance

In just a few short minutes, Kaltag had gone from feeling like the top dog to feeling like the town fool. He hadn't meant to say anything hurtful to Balto, but he couldn't deny that what he said was not the most flattering about him. However, what bothered him the most was what Balto had said before leaving.

_"You can take charge and make things right…. but I guess you're more comfortable with following the status quo than being a leader."_

"_Yeah, that pretty much sums me up right there," _Kaltag thought, _"I've never really been much of a leader, always a follower. This morning was a wake up call to how much I have to change in order to make things better between us." _Kaltag knew that he would need help on this, and he knew just who to go to. He made his way to his owner's home, which was a quaint cabin with a large yard in behind it. The yard had several dog houses set up, as the dogs that Kaltag's owner used for his racing team weren't the only ones that he had in his possession. He also had several other dogs that he used as alternates, along with a few older dogs that had grown too old for sledding, and now lived a comfortable retirement in his care. Kaltag entered the yard and passed by each of the small shelters, looking for a particular one. As he walked, he passed by one with the name "Steele" printed into the wood. The house was empty, but there was still a food bowl with some kibble sitting in front of it, _"Our human must still be expecting him to come home. Though, if he knew what had really happened, he would know that he's not coming back,"_ Kaltag thought. Passing a few more, he found the one he was looking for, with the name "Cain" marked into the wood, "Hey, Cain," Kaltag called, "Cain, are you home? I really need to talk to you."

Soon, the head of a dark grey husky poked itself out of the house, "Kaltag? I wasn't expecting you to come around. It's certainly been a while," he said as he slowly got out of his doghouse. Cain was one of the older dogs whose time as a sled dog had come and gone, but their owner still loved him for companionship. While his age had limited his mobility, he could still sometimes be seen around town, trotting along at his own pace.

"I know, but I'm here because I need some help from you," Kaltag replied.

"Oh really? That's interesting, because the last time I checked, you didn't want any of my help; you already had what you needed," Cain said flatly. Kaltag knew precisely what the old dog meant. Cain had offered to help Kaltag in the past, but he had shot him down, mostly due to Steele's influence.

_

* * *

Two and a half years ago_

It had been a few months since Nikki, Kaltag and Star had made their deal with Steele, and in that time, Kaltag had grown accustomed to following his lead dog's orders. After all, a team was supposed to follow the lead dog, and if you wanted to challenge him, you had to be ready to fight. Only the dominant dog would give orders on Steele's team, and he made it quite clear that only those that could beat him in a fight would take his authority from him. However, Kaltag had no reason to challenge him; Steele had turned out to be a great friend and so he trusted his judgment.

By now, Kaltag, Nikki and Star had grown past the point where they trained only with the other rookies, and were able to keep up with most of the older dogs. While he was still some time away from running his first actual race, he could still take part in lower intensity runs around town. They, along with the other young dogs, were starting to be seen less as rookies, and more as full members of the team. Kaltag couldn't have asked for better. No longer was he some weirdo rookie; he felt like he truly belonged, all thanks to his friendship with Steele. However, there was still one dog that Kaltag could never get along with: Zeke. The husky was still being antagonistic towards him, but Kaltag didn't feel as bad about it now. If Zeke gave him any trouble, he could simply call on Steele, Nikki and Star to chase him off. In fact, that had just happened today, when the group chased him around town until Zeke had holed himself up in one of the many abandoned buildings in Nome. As Kaltag and the group returned home, they would soon find out that not everyone thought that their actions were for the better.

"So, did you four have another fun day terrorizing a teammate?" a voice called out. The group turned and saw that it was Cain, the same dog that had led them on their training runs a few months ago.

"Why do you care?" Steele shot back.

"I care because we're all supposed to be on the same team here," Cain replied.

"Tell that to Zeke," Kaltag shot back, "He's the one who's always pushing us around and saying that we're not a part of the team, so we push back!"

"That's right Kal. Zeke isn't being a team player," Steele continued, "A true teammate knows to not cross the lead dog, or his friends."

"So, being a part of the team means that we should all roll over to your whims Steele? Well then, I guess I should do my part too," Cain said coyly before lying down on his back.

"Don't mock me Cain; you of all dogs should know not to cross me," Steele growled, "You may have had your time as lead dog, but now it's over."

"You got me there. I suppose I'm not as young as I used to be," Cain said as he got up, "Though, if it were up to me, you'd be the last choice for lead dog."

This only caused Steele to snarl, "Who do you think you are? You know full well that I'm the most talented for the job!" he growled.

"Yes, you do have talent, but you don't have much of anything else," Cain said coldly.

"Oh yeah... you see this?" Steele said, showing off his gold-studded collar, "I won this earlier this year because I was the best dog in the race. Did you ever win this during your time? No! I was the first."

"Are you sure?" Cain asked, "Forgive me for being so bold, but I've heard a few reports that you used… less than honest means to win this year's Derby."

"Whatever you heard back in White Mountain is nothing but the whining of a bunch of sore losers!" Steele growled, "I beat Amak's team and that's final! I am the champion sled dog of Alaska; fair and square."

"Alright, if that helps you sleep at night, then I won't question it. Though, the last time I checked, the title of champion goes to the whole team, not just the lead dog," Cain replied.

"What are you getting at?" Steele said, and Cain turned his attention towards Kaltag.

"Kaltag, let me ask you this. When you aren't out chasing Zeke around, does Steele ever pay much attention to you?" Cain asked, "What has he done for you?"

Kaltag thought for a moment, and found that Steele never really did pay much attention to them when they weren't out chasing Zeke. Normally, he was just telling stories about his various sledding adventures; stories in which he always ended up as the hero. As he thought about it, he realized that he and the other younger dogs rarely came up in conversation, "I… uh… well…" he stammered.

"What have I done for him?" Steele cut in, "I'll tell you what I've done; I've stopped him from being Zeke's punching bag." At this, most of Kaltag's doubts washed away as he remembered that his friendship with Steele had allowed him to rise above what he was before, and become much stronger, "I served as not only a friend, but a protector as well!"

"He's right Cain; Steele helped me deal with Zeke, and that's more than I can say about you," Kaltag continued, "You never did anything about Zeke; you just told him off, but it never worked. You did nothing for me, while Steele made me stronger."

"Look Kal, I know that what Zeke does can be frustrating, but trust me on this one. You don't have to stoop to Steele's level," he said, "C'mon, I can help you through this."

"I don't need your help!" Kaltag snapped, "I may have been the odd one out before, but not anymore. I'm someone now; I'm a part of the team. Steele did that for me, while you did **nothing**!"

Cain could see the anger burning in Kaltag's eyes, and as much as he hated to admit it, there would be no way to convince him otherwise. Kaltag's negative experiences had led him to take the easy way instead of toughing it out, "Alright, if you'd rather be somebody and follow your leader blindly, then I won't stop you. However, you may find that you're becoming no better than what you're trying to fight. You always have the choice to say no to him," he said, before walking away from them. Steele and the trio turned the other way and headed back towards their home. Even though he was still secure in his support for Steele, the exchange with Cain still left Kaltag with questions, _"Why didn't he think that Steele wasn't up to being lead dog? What did he mean by 'becoming no better than what we're fighting'? Of course we're better than Zeke; he started it, and Steele said that he wasn't being a team player. It sure sounds like Cain and Steele have a bit of a history with each other,"_ he thought, "Um, boss, can I ask you something?" Kaltag asked.

"Fire away," Steele said.

"Why doesn't Cain like the idea of you being the lead dog?" Kaltag asked, "What does he have against you?"

Steele rolled his eyes at this, "He's probably just upset about losing the position to me," he replied, "Cain used to be the lead dog of the team, but I replaced him last year. I think he's just sore about the whole thing; losing the perks and status that comes with being a lead dog."

"What about the other thing hes said?" Nikki asked, "The thing about your last race?"

"What about it?" Steele asked, slightly annoyed.

"Is it true?" Star asked, "Did you cheat?"

In a flash Steele, turned himself around and had pressed his face against Star's, "I did no such thing! I may have bent the rules, but no one caught me, so as far as I'm concerned, I won fair and square," he said, "I'm tired of hearing the accusations of sore losers, and if you or anyone else brings it up again, I swear I will shove you in a crate and send you to the Sahara! Understood!" The three of them nodded and the conversation ended with that outburst, as no one wanted to aggravate Steele any further. He was still their boss, and he had previously made it clear that stupid questions would not be tolerated, "Good. Now that that's cleared up, I think we should have a little more fun today," Steele said, "Maybe I'll give you guys a little treat."

"What is it; some new bones?" Kaltag asked.

"No, but that would be nice right about now," Steele replied, "I want you guys to help me deal with a certain mongrel that has crossed me a few too many times…"

_

* * *

Present Day_

At the time, Kaltag had been so overcome by his frustration, that he he had joined Steele without a second thought. He saw Steele as a dog of action; someone who would do something about their problems. Cain on the other hand was seen as an aging has-been who didn't want to stick his neck out. However, that was then; that was before he learned just what kind of dog Steele truly was, and how blind action could come back to bite you on the rear, "Okay, I know we haven't been on the best terms in the past, but I want to make things right... for everyone," he said.

The old dog looked at him for a moment before breaking out into a grin, "Well, I did tell you that you always had a choice, and after what happened to Steele, I guess you made the right one. Plus, that choice got you into the position of lead dog as well," he said, "How are you feeling about that?"

"I'm feeling great about it. It was unexpected, but our owner thought I was up for the job, so here I am," he said.

"Well, let's just hope that you do a better job than our last lead," Cain said, "Steele may have had talent, but he was reckless. Worse, he even dragged a few good dogs down with him, using them to help weed out those who might oppose him," Kaltag knew that he was referring to the actions of himself, Nikki and Star, and it only served to increase the sick feeling in his stomach, "I might've been able to stop him too, but I didn't. To this day, I've wondered how things would've gone differently if I-"

"Had been less of a bystander?" Kaltag finished, and Cain nodded, "Yeah, I know how you feel right now; wishing to turn back time and do it over again."

"Hm, I guess being saved by someone you used to hate will do that to you," Cain said with a slight chuckle, "Though, I will admit that I was surprised when it was Balto leading the medicine home. That fact in itself will probably make most of the town rethink what it means to fit in."

"That's what I came here about," Kaltag said, "The thing is, I'm afraid that the town isn't changing, simply staying the same way it always has been."

"What? Surely the whole town would be swayed not just by Balto's great deed, but also by your trust in him." Cain said.

"That's the thing; I don't know if I am doing the right thing," Kaltag said, "Earlier today, I... kinda said some things that weren't very flattering about Balto while joking with a few dogs." At this Cain groaned, "And Balto heard me too… he wasn't the happiest camper when he heard it."

"Oh Kaltag, why did you do such a thing? You can't just go back on your promises," Cain said.

"I don't know why I did it. Spitz and I were just joking around, and I didn't want to be left out," Kaltag replied, "I wanted to have fun with them and be a part of their group."

"In other words, you did it simply because you wanted to fit in with the current crowd. After all, that's why you stuck with Steele all these years," Cain said.

"Balto was right, I am too comfortable with the status quo," Kaltag said, "But I don't want to be like that if it means pushing Balto away. What can I do?"

"First off, you must remember that you're the lead dog of the team, not Spitz," Cain said, "I told you that you always have the choice to say no to them, and my advice still stands."

"Are you sure it will work?" Kaltag asked, "Spitz seems pretty set in his ways."

"He's only set because it was how Steele ran things," Cain replied, "You're in charge now, and if you lead by example, I'm sure that eventually Spitz and the others will come around."

"I don't know… I'm one dog against many," Kaltag said.

"You're thinking the way Steele did," Cain retorted, "Steele always thought of himself as a one dog show. That was what got him into trouble on the serum run, and it will get you into trouble as well. You may be the lead dog, but you're the lead dog… of a **team**."

"A team? Oh, of course!" Kaltag said, hitting himself on the head, "I have Nikki and Star with me, along with all the others… and Balto too. He may not formally be a part of it, but I still consider him a part of the team!"

"Now you're getting the hang of it," Cain said, "You may be in charge, but that doesn't mean you're not allowed to ask your friends for help."

"You mean like how I just asked you for help?" Kaltag said, and Cain nodded, "Thanks; truth be told, I wasn't sure if you'd still be willing to help me after all this time."

"Hey, we may have had our rough patches, but we're still on the same team."

* * *

Balto continued trotting through the alleyways of Nome, the meeting with Rosy's family still ringing in his head. For a short time, he had actually believed that his place would be with Jenna in her home, but that hope had been for naught. The decision ultimately rested with Rosy's parents, and they had never intended to let him in their home, _"Then again, I suppose it was a little unrealistic to expect them to let me in just like that. What was that Boris once said to me; something along the lines of 'Don't put all your eggs in one nest'? Well I guess it was lesson learned for me. Though, I would have loved to have been with Jenna." _As he crept through the empty alleyways, he remembered how for many years, this was the safest way to travel for him, as going out into the open streets would usually result in dogs chasing him or one of the humans kicking snow or dirt at him. It was a lonely way to travel, as dogs rarely went into the alleys; unless they wanted to pick on him, that is. However, the alleys seemed unusually cramped this time, and he felt the urge to go onto the open street. _"Okay, if Spitz is wrong, then I can go out onto the street and walk down it without any problems," _he thought as he found a street and went out onto it, sticking to the side nearest the buildings that lined the street, _"Okay, so far so good."__  
_

At first, it seemed like people barely knew that he was there, but soon he was spotted by a young boy, "Hey, Balto," he called, "Balto, come here boy." Balto was a little unsure of approaching the boy, but he didn't bolt away from him. After all, he had called him over, and he seemed friendly enough. Balto slowly came up to him and saw that he wasn't one of the kids from the hospital, "It's okay boy, I won't hurt you," he said reassuringly, "I heard about what you did for the kids that were sick. You're amazing boy. You saved a few of my friends too." Despite being a stranger to him, Balto decided to give this kid the benefit of the doubt. He came close enough to allow the boy to reach out and rub him behind the ears. Balto enjoyed the affection from him, and leaned in closer to sniff at him, "Hehe, that tickles Balto," he laughed, "Hey, I bet you want a treat don't you?" he asked, and Balto wagged his tail in response, "Well, follow me. I'm sure my dad would let you have something from his shop."

The boy walked along the street and Balto followed at his side. He may not have had the best of luck with Rosy's family, but maybe he would have better luck with this boy. Soon, they reached the butcher shop, and that was when Balto started to get a little apprehensive. He did not have the greatest relations with the local butcher, as the man thought that Balto was little more than a thief. The boy went down to a side door, and knocked on it, "Dad, it's me," he called out. Soon the door opened, and the boy's father opened the door, while Balto stayed to the side out of caution.

"Oh, it's you Samuel. How are you doing my boy?" he greeted, giving Samuel a hug.

"I'm fine dad," he replied, "I was wondering if I could ask you for something."

"What is it you need?" he asked.

"Well, it's actually not for me," Samuel said, "I was wondering if I could get something for Balto."

At the mention of Balto's name, the butcher poked his head out of the doorway and saw Balto waiting off the side from the door. Balto wagged his tail to show that he had friendly intentions, but despite this, the butcher's face turned very cross at his presence, "No Samuel, I'm not giving anything to that mongrel stray," he replied.

"What? Why not? He's the town hero," Samuel protested.

"He may have brought the medicine home, but it doesn't change what he is," the butcher replied, "He's still a thief; more than once, he's pilfered things from me."

"I thought you left scraps out for all the dogs to freely take," Samuel said.

"I do, but sometimes I swear he breaks into my meat locker to take the fresher meat," he said, "He even once swiped a good, live goose right from my cutting board!" Balto remembered that incident. Granted, the goose in question was actually Boris; he didn't want to see one of his best friends butchered, so he had plucked the old bird right off of the cutting board. Unfortunately, the butcher didn't know that; all he saw was a stray dog taking a perfectly good goose from him, "Go on, get ya wild mutt," the butcher said, kicking snow at Balto.

"But dad-"

"No buts! I'm not giving any handouts to that mongrel and that's final," he replied.

Balto didn't need to be told twice that he was not welcome, and he dashed away. He could hear Samuel's protests and calls for him to come back, but Balto didn't pay attention. For the second time that day, he had been pushed away by those who still saw him as a dangerous stray, instead of the selfless wolfdog he was. The opinions of those who did care about him didn't matter, as they weren't the ones in charge. Those who were in charge however, cared less about him; they still thought of him as a troublesome wolf. It was starting to seem more and more as though the town had not changed.


	5. The Last Straw

Chapter 5: The Last Straw

As Balto walked through the town, he went over the day's events. First, there was the incident with Spitz and Kaltag, in which Kaltag seemed to have gone back on his promise to support Balto in favor of having some laughs with those in town. Next, there was the rejection from Rosy's parents, due the fact that they still saw him as a potentially troublesome stray. Finally, there was the butcher, and while that event didn't have as much of an emotional sting as the first two, the fact that he still was seen as nothing more than a thief in that man's eyes still hurt. He may have gotten a few on his side, but for the most part, things were still the same. Most humans still looked down on him, and some dogs didn't want anything to do with him, _"Why do I even bother trying?"_ Balto thought to himself, _"No matter what, things never got better, so why would they get better now?"_

Soon, he found himself on the other side of town, near the small hospital that served the town. This was where his journey started, and if there was any place that he would find some solace, it would be here. Finding the front door securely closed, he crept around the side and entered the hospital's boiler room, which was where he could access the crawlspace underneath the hospital. Trotting in, he walked under, keeping his ears alert for any discussion. For the most part, things were quiet, but then he caught a familiar voice up above.

"Eric, it's nice to see you again," the gravelly voice said. Balto instantly recognized the voice as the musher from the serum run, another one of the many lives he had saved.

"Same here Gunnar. How's your head holding up?" Eric asked.

"It's doing great, thanks for asking," Gunnar replied, "The doc insisted that I have it checked out every few days to make sure that everything is still working fine."

"That's doctors for ya, always wanting to check and recheck," Eric chuckled, "So, I hear that you've made ol' Kaltag the lead of your team."

"You heard right," Gunnar replied, "With Steele missing, I need a good dog to lead my team, and Kaltag's got a pretty good head on his shoulders."

"He must be a pretty good sled dog if he meets your standards," Eric said.

"He is, but he isn't at the level that Steele was at," Gunnar mused, "I'm still trying to find out what happened to him."

"_I know what happened to him. I know it all to well,"_ Balto thought.

"Oh, but the mystery only adds to the fun of the story. There's the fact that you managed to get home through that fierce blizzard at all, along with how you were found by Balto, who took Steele's place to get you home," Eric continued.

"Now that's the part that just doesn't make sense to me. How did that stray mutt manage to find us?" Gunnar asked, "We were far from home and off any trail. The odds of a stray wandering out and finding us are…"

"…Astronomical," Eric continued, "The only way I can think of anyone or anything coming to your rescue is if they knew what was going on."

"How would a mutt like him know that we were in trouble?" Gunnar asked, "Besides, why would he even help in the first place?"

"Who knows what goes on in a dog's head," Eric replied, "I'm just glad that you guys made it back in one piece. After we heard that you missed your checkpoint, we started to lose hope. We thought that you wouldn't come back at all."

"That's right, I almost didn't come back, considering I'd been knocked out. I guess the major turning point happened after I was knocked out. That must have been where Balto came in," Gunnar said.

"Which brings us back to the first question: What happened to Steele that prevented him from returning with the team?" Eric asked, "Maybe when you were knocked out, Steele was hurt too and he couldn't go on."

"Maybe," Gunnar said, "Or maybe… that Balto had something to do with it."

"What are you saying?" Eric asked. Balto perked his ears up as well. He wanted to know what he had to say as well.

"Well, it's just that the team could've easily come home with Steele and Balto together. However, Steele didn't come home, only Balto did." Gunnar started.

"What exactly are you getting at?" Eric asked.

"I want you to think about it Eric; Balto isn't exactly the most trustworthy dog out there, and more than once he has shown hostility towards humans and dogs," Gunnar said, "I mean, after the race to choose who would fetch the medicine, he snarled and looked ready to snap at me."

"_That was only because Steele stomped on my paw. Trust me, it wasn't personal," _Balto thought.

"Plus, the butcher caught him breaking into his meat locker the day before, along with all the scuffles that he got into with the other dogs in years past," Gunnar continued, "Wolfdogs are known to be unstable, and they are known to have an animosity towards other dogs. I think… I think that mongrel did something to my lead dog. He did something to him while I was knocked out."

"But what about your other dogs? He could've hurt them too, but he didn't," Eric said, "Besides, they seemed to accept his leadership pretty well if you ask me."

"That's the other thing; normally sled teams don't just let another dog take over. They follow only their pack leader, and will only follow another if the current leader is… forcibly removed, if you get my meaning," Gunnar said.

"You're not actually thinking that… Balto might have killed Steele are you?" Eric asked.

"Maybe, or maybe he just hurt him enough to prevent him from running. I wouldn't put it past him, considering what he's done in the past," Gunnar replied, "A year ago, he roughed up Steele so badly that he couldn't run for two weeks."

Balto felt his stomach knot up as he heard this; they were actually thinking that he might've attacked Steele out there, when in fact it was the opposite, _"I don't believe this! I saved your life too; doesn't that count for anything? Don't my good deeds count for anything in this town?" _Balto thought, _"Would you still be thinking that he had been hurt if another dog came for you, or is it just because I'm half-wolf?"_

"Though, I still have some hope that I'm wrong. Steele was always my favorite, and I'd love to get him back. I even sent out a telegram asking for any information about him, in the hopes that someone else can find him," Gunnar said, sending another shot of alarm running through Balto. If Steele managed to come back, it would all be over.

"And if you don't find him?" Eric asked.

"Well, then I suppose I can train Kaltag to serve as his replacement," Gunnar said, "I'm only hoping that he's up to the job."

"Well if thing's don't work out with ol' Kal, have you ever thought of taking Balto in?" Eric asked, giving Balto one last ray of hope. If you could be accepted into the sled team, then maybe that would finally make things start to turn around. Unfortunately, like all of his previous hopes today, it would be dashed before he could even start to enjoy it.

"Absolutely not," Gunnar replied, "I don't care what he did, I still don't trust half-breeds. Wolves don't make good sled dogs."

This was the last straw, and Balto stormed out of the crawlspace. Despite everything he had done for them, not even the human musher that he had saved trusted him. Instead, he suspected him of harming Steele and taking over the team by force. He was still viewed with suspicion, meaning that he had gotten his hopes up for nothing, _"Despite what I have done for them, they still suspect me of wrongdoing, all because of what I am. From day one, this is what I've had to put up with. Even when I was a pup, they never saw me as a lonely stray; they only saw me as a dangerous wolf, and made sure to treat me as such."_

_

* * *

Two and a half years ago_

Steele led Nikki, Kaltag and Star through the town, occasionally stopping to sniff at the ground, "Hey boss, what are yous looking for?" Nikki asked.

"That little half-breed," Steele replied, "He's around here somewhere." At first, the three dogs were a little confused as to what he meant, but they would get their answer when Steele picked up the scent he was looking for, "Aha! I've got you now you little whelp," he growled and followed the scent. The group followed him until the reached a small alley and peeked around the corner. In the alley was a young pup, probably no older than when they had started their own sled training, which would put him at about six to eight months old. He had a very skinny build, which was a clear sign of living as a stray.

"Is that him?" Star asked, "He looks so young; what's wrong with him?"

"It's quite simple Star," Steele replied, "That pup over there is no ordinary up; it's actually a half-wolf. I think one of the human kids started calling him 'Balto' or something like that." This instantly got the attention of the trio. Ever since they were young pups they had heard the tales of vicious wolves and wolf hybrids who preyed on unsuspecting dogs. The fact that that there was a wolf hybrid living right on their doorstep sent waves of fear through them. Despite that, Kaltag still had his doubts. A full grown wolf was one thing, but this was only a pup they were dealing with. That hardly seemed fair.

"Uh, boss, I'm wondering if this pup really is worth it," Kaltag started, "I mean, he's just a little guy - we'd have an unfair advantage."

Steele looked at him with a scowl on his face, "What? Don't tell me you're one of those lobo-loving pansies," he said, causing Nikki and Star to chuckle.

"No, I'm not. I'm just wondering why him; what has he done to us?" Kaltag asked.

"He's done plenty; that little pup bit me unprovoked and I'm sure he'd do it again to me or any of you if given the chance," Steele replied, "Besides, little half-wolves eventually grow up into big half-wolves. Then we'll see just how much damage he can do!" The three of them gulped at the thought of having a big half-wolf chasing them around town. None of them wanted to face down a full-grown hybrid, "Besides, we're not going to do much; we're just going to scare him off, that's all. He has to know that there's no room for wolves in a dog's town."

Despite his misgivings about going after a small pup, Kaltag thought that it would be okay if they simply chased him off, _"Besides, I'm not some lobo-loving pansy. Chasing him around might be fun too," _ he thought as they crept around the corner and started to approach Balto. He was simply sniffing around, but when he saw Steele and his companions, he froze for a moment before dashing away from them, while Steele and the others gave chase. Balto may have been small, but his legs carried him quickly across the ground, before turning into an abandoned building. His pursuers entered the building moments later, but the wolfdog pup had apparently vanished. _"I bet he got the hint and left," _Kaltag thought, _"Then again, I don't see any other exit out of here, so where'd he go?"_

Soon, Kaltag's question would be answered when they heard a board creak above their heads. Balto was above them, on an upper level of the empty building. Steele barked out at him, causing Balto to panic before dashing across a beam towards an open window to try to escape. Unfortunately, his rear leg got tangled in a rope up there, causing him to trip and fall off the beam. His fall would be cut short when the rope became taught, and he was left dangling six feet above the floor. At first, Kaltag thought that they would simply leave the pup hanging there, but Steele had another plan. Grinning, he shouted "Piñata!" and jumped at Balto, snapping his jaw at him. However, Balto was dangling just out of reach, so Steele's jaw only snapped in air. Balto cried out in terror as Steele's jaw approached, and was relieved when his lunge came short. However, his relief would be short lived, as Steele jumped again, "C'mon, join in you guys!" Nikki was the next one to jump up at him, followed by Star, then Kaltag.

Even though their acts were terrorizing the young Balto, Kaltag still felt secure that they weren't going to do any real harm, _"After all, none of us are going to bite him," _Kaltag thought, trying to suppress his doubts as the four of them took turns trying to snap at Balto. However, on one of his jumps Kaltag briefly made eye contact with him, and when he saw the expression on Balto's face, time seemed to slow down. The younger dog was more than just scared, he was absolutely terrified. Kaltag wasn't looking at the vicious wolf image that his upbringing had put in his head; instead, he was just looking at a scared pup who didn't know why this was happening to him. When Kaltag hit the ground, he watched as Balto cringed every time one of the others snapped up at him, _"Wait, that's what we wanted to do to this half-wolf. We wanted him to be scared of us," _he thought,_ "But why doesn't it feel right to do this? What's going on with me?"_ Kaltag wanted to say something, but remembered that he been called a 'lobo-lover' earlier simply for not wanting to chase him around, which was something that he wanted to avoid. Fortunately, he wouldn't have to feel conflicted for much longer.

A man had heard the barking coming from the building and came in to investigate. When he saw what was happening, he put a stop to it, "Alright all of you, that's enough! Go on, shoo!" he said, and the four of them stopped their barking and obeyed the human's command. Kaltag followed last, and took a moment to look back inside. The human had gotten out a pocketknife and was cutting the rope that Balto was suspended from. The young dog was whimpering from his ordeal, and that affected Kaltag, _"Aw jeez, I didn't want to do anything like that. I thought we would just chase him away. How did it end up like this?"_ Kaltag didn't know it, but that incident would only be the first of many where he would cross paths with Balto. While he would simply go along with the group's prejudice in most of those cases, a few would make him wonder just how far is too far.

_

* * *

Present Day_

By the time the afternoon gave way to evening, Balto found himself in the spot he always went to when he had a lot on his mind; perched on the bow of the beached boat he called home, staring out across the flat tundra that surrounded the area, _"Has it really changed?" _he thought, _"If it has, then it sure isn't showing, but if it hasn't, then what am I still doing here? If nothing's different from before, then why should I stay?"_

Soon, he heard the slapping of webbed feet behind him and knew that Boris was coming to talk to him. Boris was an old Russian snow goose whom Balto had met when he was a young pup. The old bird had taken it upon himself to look after Balto until he could manage on his own, and that had led the two to develop a bizarre father-son bond, "So, vhat is on your mind today?" Boris asked. Balto smiled a little; Boris sure had learned how to read his moods well.

"I'm wondering if things really have changed," Balto replied.

"Vhat do you mean? Of course they have changed! You saved all those kids and got the girl of your dreams. You're the hero of the day!" he exclaimed.

"Exactly, I was the hero of that day, but what about the days after?" Balto asked, "What if my acceptance is only short-term, soon to be forgotten?"

"Exactly where is this coming from?" he asked, "This morning you were snuggling with Jenna like you were Casanova. I don't think I've ever seen you happier. Vhat happened to you boychic?"

"A lot of things," Balto replied before telling him the events of that day, putting extra emphasis on the part where Rosy's parents had forbidden him from their home.

"Hm, when you put it that way, they did seem rather harsh," Boris admitted, "Having one human badmouth you is one thing, but more than one, and in spite of vhat you did for them, it's… not right."

"I know, and it's for the same reason that it always has been," Balto continued, "It's all because I'm part wolf. It doesn't matter who I save; I'm still a stray wolfdog."

"But it can't be all bad," Boris said, "Didn't you say that there were kids that were starting to like you? Vhat about the sled dogs on the team you helped as well?"

"Yes, there are the kids, but they aren't the ones who make the rules," Balto replied, "And the team… well I'm not sure if they're completely on my side anymore."

"Well, maybe you just have to give them some time," Boris suggested, "Give them time to get used to you and they'll turn around."

"They might…. or they might not, and just keep going along like they always have," Balto replied, "After a while, they may even forget about me."

"Oh, I don't think so boychic. Whenever something like this happens, it tends to stay in people's minds for quite a while," Boris said.

"Heh, Jenna said something similar too," Balto mused, "She said that they'd remember we well into the next century."

"She's a smart girl, so I'd put quite a bit of faith in vhat she says. In the meantime, since you obviously still need a little leg-up, I'm staying right here with you," Boris said.

"Oh Boris, you don't need to do that for me," Balto said, "Why don't you fly south this year; I'll be okay on my own."

"Fly… Um, no, you still need me," Boris said quickly.

"Aw, c'mon Boris, don't let me hold you back," Balto said, "Don't let me keep you from flying with the other geese."

"You're not the reason I don't fly, it's… a personal reason," Boris replied, "Look, I'm sticking with you boychic, so don't argue with me," he finished before returning to the wheelhouse.

Balto thought about Boris's words. He didn't want to be a burden on the old goose, but the only way to lift that burden would be for him to find a place to settle in. However, the day's events had made the town seem like a far less likely place to live, _"If not there, then where? Where would a half-wolf like me belong?"_ he thought as he closed his eyes. Suddenly, the image of the snow-white wolf that had appeared to him during the serum run flashed through his mind. When he had howled with the wolf, it felt like he belonged with it. He had started to embrace his wolf side, and that gave him a sense of strength; the strength he needed to return the medicine.

Snapping open his eyes, he looked past the town and towards the woods that surrounded it. What if he was actually meant to be in the wild, with the wolves? Maybe that was what the ghostly wolf was trying to tell him; maybe it was trying to show him which side he truly belonged with…


	6. Searching for Truth

Chapter 6: Searching for Truth

Balto had a fitful sleep that night, as his dreams echoed what he had been grappling with while awake. He was running along a desolate landscape, hearing Jenna call for him, mixed with the howls of wolves. He'd try to follow one voice, but the call from the other would only grow stronger until he turned around to follow it instead. He went back and forth many times, never able to answer either call. Finally, he woke up, but the dream had only left him more conflicted. He was torn between the side of him that wanted to run free to escape the prejudice of the town, and the side of him that wanted to settle with Jenna. His wolf side and his dog side were fighting it out in his head, but neither was able to gain a clear advantage.

"_You never thought about running in the wild before because you were ashamed of your wolf side. Now that you have accepted it, you should embrace it and live the way your mother did," _his wolf side argued._  
_

"_But what about the town?"_ his dog side shot back, _"What about all the people who could give you love and affection?"_

"_You know full well that the people who care are outnumbered by those who don't,"_ his wolf side replied, _"You saw what happened yesterday; even someone who had claimed to be your friend had turned against you, betraying you."_

"_But what about Jenna?"_ Balto thought as the morning light started to enter the wheelhouse. He remembered that only a day before, he had woken up with her at his side. He loved the companionship she gave to him, the warmth of having her pressed up against him. However, this morning she would be in her home, and would have to stay as long as her owners commanded it. She would have to stay in, while he had to stay out, _"Jenna hasn't betrayed me, and I can't leave her like that…" _

"_If the town still doesn't accept you, then it will be much harder to see her. We'd have to meet in secret… could you really do that to her?" _his wolf side shot back,_ "Do you really want to go back to that? Always having to look over your shoulder while in town? Do you want to continue living in fear?"_ This was the final straw for him. He remembered how scared he used to get whenever he went into town, and if had a chance to avoid it, he would take it. He quietly got up and trotted down the gangplank and onto the snow. To the left was the town, which had Jenna, but also had many who were against him. To the right was the wilderness, which were mostly unknown to Balto, but could possibly hold where he belonged. Finally, he made his choice, and turned towards the woods, _"As much as I don't want to leave you Jenna, the town may not be where I truly belong. I don't know where I'm going, but I hope that I will be able to see you again," _he thought as he dashed across the tundra and stole away into the woods.

* * *

Jenna woke up that morning, thinking that she was nuzzling against Balto's warm side. However, when she opened her eyes, she was disappointed to find that she had only been rubbing into her pillow. Balto hadn't been with her that night, probably because he was still upset over the previous day's events, _"Well if he can't come to me, then I'll have to go to him," _she thought as she crept out of her shed, taking in the crisp morning air. She walked out onto the street and started in the direction that would lead her to Balto's boat outside of town.

Near the edge of town, she saw Kaltag, and while he started to approach, she didn't acknowledge him; Balto wasn't the only one who was sore about what he had said yesterday, "Jenna!" he called out, "Hey, wait up!" he said, but she didn't respond. Kaltag caught onto this, and it didn't take long for him to figure out why. "Okay, I know that you're probably still upset from yesterday, but I was hoping that you could help me find Balto this morning. There's something from yesterday I want to clear up with him; something that I want to set right."

"Oh, so now you want to do the right thing," she replied dryly.

Kaltag frowned, but maintained his calm, "Yes I do, and I always have. I'm sorry about what happened and I want Balto to know that too."

She looked at him with a scowl, but decided to give him a chance, "Okay, I was just on my way to see him too, so you can come along," Jenna replied, "However, you'll have to bail yourself out."

"If I were you, I wouldn't waste my time with him," a voice called out. Kaltag and Jenna turned and saw that it was Spitz, along with Carla.

"I hate to break it to you, but I'm not you," Kaltag growled, "You are the meanest, the sourest, the most stuck-up-"

"Say what you want," Spitz cut him off, "What I am saying is true. You can try to visit that wolfdog, but you'll find that won't be answering your calls."

"Spitz, what did you do!" Jenna snapped, "If you did anything to hurt him, I swear I will-"

"Relax Jenna, I didn't do anything to that fleabag you adore so much," Spitz replied, "This morning, I was taking a bit of a walk and I saw him run across the tundra and into the woods."

"That doesn't mean anything," Kaltag said, "What if he's just out taking a leak?"

"If he is, then he's taking his time, 'cause I haven't seen him come back," Spitz replied.

"Even if that is true, why would he run off into the woods?" Jenna asked.

"I don't know," Carla put in, "Maybe he finally realized that he'll never fit in with a town of dogs. Maybe he went out to find some wolf friends – though I don't know if even they would want a half-breed like him."

"He only feels that way because dogs like you make him feel unwelcome," Kaltag retorted.

"Oh, you're going to pin this on me, eh?" Spitz replied, "Face it Kaltag, you're not exactly a saint when it comes to acting around Balto." Kaltag knew that Spitz had a point; he had also had a hand in Balto's current frame of mind.

"No, he wouldn't leave," Jenna said, "He wouldn't leave me like that. Why would he leave without even saying goodbye?"

"Who knows?" Carla said, "Maybe you weren't wild enough for him? After all, you're still a housedog, bound to your human family. Maybe he wants a girl that he can… chase sticks in the wild with," Jenna was becoming more agitated by the second. The mere idea that Balto would leave her like that stabbed at her heart, "After all, he is a pretty famous dog now. That fame could help him shop around for someone else… you know, like the last dog who had a fancy for you," Carla finished.

In an instant, Jenna lunged out towards Carla, but Kaltag grabbed her bandanna in his jaw and held her back, "How dare you compare him to a dog like Steele!" she screamed, "He is nothing like that glory hound! You take that back! Let me go Kal!"

"No Jenna, she's not worth it," Kaltag replied. Jenna barked out at Carla for a few more moments before calming down. Kaltag let her go, but she still seethed with anger, before taking off like a rocket towards Balto's boat. Kaltag followed soon after, leaving Spitz and Carla behind.

"Balto!" she cried out, "Balto, please tell me you're there!" However, there was no response as she ran towards the shore. She dashed up the gangplank, but when she reached the wheelhouse, she found that Spitz had been right all along. Balto was gone, and there was only a bleary eyed goose that had been awoken by her shouts.

"Oy, can't an old bird get some rest around here?" Boris asked.

"Boris, where is Balto?" she asked.

"You mean he's not with you?" Boris asked, and Jenna shook her head, "Then vere is he?"

"I don't know… though I may have an idea," Jenna replied, and told Boris what she had learned from Spitz.

"Oh dear, I was afraid something like this might happen," Boris said, "Balto came home in such low spirits last night, but even though he was going on and on about how he might not fit into the town, I never thought he'd actually run away."

"Jenna! Over here!" Kaltag cried out, and Jenna left the wheelhouse to see what he had found, "I think I've got a trail we can follow," Sure enough, Kaltag had found a set of large prints that led away from the boat and towards the woods, "So Spitz was right, Balto went off into the woods," he said.

"Well then we have to find him!" Jenna replied, "We have to show him that dogs like Spitz are wrong… and you still have to apologize to him."

"I know, but what if it's not as bad as we think? Maybe we should wait for a while and see if he comes back?" he said. He didn't want to jump to conclusions, mostly because he didn't entirely trust Spitz's word.

"Sit and wait… that's your plan?" Jenna asked, "You think that we should sit on the sidelines and do nothing to help Balto while he is going through a tough time? If this is how you always help out friends, then I'm surprised that you still have any!" Kaltag winced from this; Jenna sure knew how to give a good verbal lashing, "If you want to just sit here like nothing's wrong, then be my guest! In the meantime, I'm going out to find Balto," she finished.

"You're going out alone? Are you nuts?" Kaltag exclaimed, "There are wolves and bears and other animals out there that might want to take a bite out of you."

"Well, if you're so concerned about it, then maybe you should come along," she suggested, "I'm going with or without you Kaltag, so you'd better make up your mind now." Normally Kaltag was wary of going out into the woods without the team or a human for protection, but he knew that he wouldn't be able to live with himself if something happened to Jenna out there… or to Balto. So, he followed her across the snow towards the woods, remembering how this wasn't the first time that he and Jenna had butted heads.

_

* * *

Eighteen months earlier_

For the past year, life had been very good for Nikki, Kaltag and Star. They continued to gain experience as sled dogs, having trips either for training or other jobs their owner had been assigned. When they weren't out on sled runs, they usually walked around the town, enjoying the sights and having fun with each other. Every now and then, their fun would involve chasing Balto around the town. While Kaltag had a few reservations about going after him when he was a pup, those disappeared as Balto started to grow older. His rough fur and wolfish appearance started to make Kaltag a little nervous. He certainly looked like he was capable of doing quite a bit of damage to them, but whenever they appeared, Balto would dash off to try to escape them.

"We're doing a civil service here guys," Steele would say, "By making that wolfdog run, we're keeping the town safe from him. Though, I wouldn't mind catching up to him and showing him what we're made of," he finished with a chuckle. Steele's words had convinced Nikki, Kaltag and Star that chasing Balto around was for the better, and that pushed away any doubts about their actions. However, chasing Balto around was not the only thing that Steele had come to enjoy. There was also a certain dog that he had developed quite a fancy for. Her name was Jenna, and Kaltag could see why Steele was so taken with her. She had grown into a beautiful husky, and Steele had his sights set on making her his mate. It had started small, when the dogs had gathered in the old mill for some social time. Steele had tried to sidle up to her and give her a nuzzle. However, she wasn't as enthusiastic about his advances, nor did she enjoy having him in her personal space. She tried to protest, but he ignored her. Eventually, she lost her patience and pushed him away, knocking him onto his side. Despite being smaller than him, she could still pack a punch. This continued on for weeks, and while Steele remained oblivious, Kaltag easily saw that she was not impressed.

"Um, boss," Kaltag started, "I'd hate to be a wet blanket here, but maybe Jenna really doesn't like you all that much."

Steele only let out a sharp laugh when he heard this, "Oh Kaltag, don't be ridiculous. Jenna is lucky to have attracted a champion like me. She's just playing hard to get. Besides, I've always liked girls that are feisty," he finished, licking his lips a few times.

Eventually, Steele did manage to get one date out of her, but it was short-lived, and his attempts to go further were only met by contempt on her side. She was particularly critical of how Steele and his trio treated Balto, "I don't get it boss, why doesn't she like the fact that we're keeping Balto away from the town?" Kaltag asked.

"Oh, I don't bother to know what goes on in a girl's head," Steele replied, "She just doesn't realize the times that wolfdog has gotten too close for comfort," One of those times he was referring to had been shortly before their date.

While he was asking her out, Balto had crept up behind them, hiding under a porch. By the time Steele had spotted him, he was close enough that he could have lunged out to snap Kaltag's tail off. Kaltag's blood turned to ice when he saw just how close that ragged half-wolf was, but Balto darted away after being spotted. Jenna had been caught up in the chase, with Balto crashing right into her. Fortunately, Balto didn't hurt her much, and Steele forced him to flee from the town. The day had been saved once again, but Jenna seemed to be missing the point. Instead of flinging herself towards the brave dog that had saved her, she instead struck Steele across the face with her paw, and scolded him about picking on Balto. "I don't know what she sees in that half-breed, but I promise you I'll put a stop to it," Steele said a few days later, "Speaking of half-breeds…" he trailed off as he spotted Balto in the distance, trotting into an alley. A grin grew across his face as he signaled the three to follow him into the alleys. The narrow passages made for good cover, and soon, Steele had found something that attracted his interest. It was a tall stack of barrels, on their sides and arranged into a rough pyramid shape. Steele climbed up near the top while the trio stayed below.

"So what's the plan dere boss?" Nikki asked.

"You'll see soon enough. Just keep a look out for Balto," he replied as he used the top barrels for cover. Kaltag, Nikki and Star obeyed, and hid behind the barrel stack as well, with Steele right above them. Soon enough, they saw Balto appear in the alley, sniffing the ground while looking from side to side.

"He's here," Kaltag whispered, but Steele didn't react. Balto was coming closer, and that only made Kaltag tenser. After their last run-in, he didn't want Balto to surprise him again, "Steele, what are you waiting for?" Kaltag snapped.

"Just a little closer…" he said, and they waited until Balto was only a few steps away from them. At any moment, he would come around and find their hiding place… "Now!" Steele barked out, and in an instant, all four jumped out, with Steele landing right on top of Balto, "Look what we have here guys; the wolfdog is sneaking around again," he sneered, "Are you looking for something Balto?"

"Just a little food, nothing more," Balto replied nervously, "Why can't you guys leave me be?"

"We can't because we don't like having wolves in our town," Steele replied, "I'm in charge here; what I say goes, and I say that you're not welcome." At this, Balto only gave him a look of utter contempt before launching a large wad of spit right at his eye. Steele shook it off, and this insult only enraged him further, "Oh, you're going to wish you hadn't done that you mutt," he growled, before grabbing Balto and slamming him into the side of a nearby building. However, throwing him around meant that he was no longer in Steele's grip, and Balto took this chance to make a run for it. Steele and his trio had cut off most exits, and but there was still the nearby barrel stack. Balto started to climb up, but Steele was quicker, launching himself at Balto. The two collided and Steele's momentum slammed Balto into the top-most barrel, knocking it off its perch. This set off a chain reaction that destabilized the entire stack, sending it toppling over and taking Balto with it. One of the barrels crashed through the door to one of the shops, and Kaltag could hear the sound of things being broken inside, followed by the cursing of the resident human. "C'mon, let's get out of here," Steele said. While Kaltag had been looking forward to knocking Balto around a little more, he didn't want to be at the scene of the crime and dashed away. As he looked back, he saw that the human was already out, wielding a bat and swinging it wildly at Balto.

"Do you have any idea how much you've broken you mutt?" the human shouted, "You're lucky I don't have my gun here 'cause I'd blast you right to…" his shouts grew more distant as they retreated, but Kaltag grinned when he saw just how much trouble he had gotten Balto in.

"_Maybe this time that mutt will get the message - stay out!"_ he thought, but soon he would find out that their actions against Balto did not go entirely unseen.

"So, this is what qualifies as fun in this town now? That's just sick," a voice called out. They turned and saw that it was Jenna, fuming at them. However, Steele ignored her anger, deciding to simply play it cool with her.

"Oh, but we didn't do anything," he fibbed, "It was Balto that knocked over those barrels and caused the damage."

"Uh-huh… nice try, I know what I saw," Jenna replied, "Balto was only trying to get away from you creeps and you jumped at him. You were the one who caused the damage, but you're not dog enough to own up to it."

"So there may have been some collateral, but we still managed to show that wolf what happens when he sets foot in my town; maybe this time he'll stay out," Steele said, "But enough about him. I was thinking Jenna, I had such a fun time with you when we went out last time; would you be interested for a second round?"

"Not on your life," Jenna replied, "If you think I'm going out with a rude oaf like you, then you're more twisted than I thought. Besides, it was very obvious what you really wanted from me that night."

"Okay, so maybe I came on a little too quickly last time, but if you want I can-"

"The answer is still no Steele," she growled, "Why don't you just leave me alone? Balto too. He doesn't deserve the treatment you're giving him."

"Why do you even care about him?" Kaltag asked, "He's a half-wolf."

"He is not just a half wolf. He's a kind soul who simply wants to be left to live his life. If you took the time to know him, you'd see that," she replied.

"Heh, it almost sounds like yous have a thing for him," Nikki cut in.

"Yeah, you're not one of those dirty lobo-lovers are you?" Kaltag asked, causing the four of them to burst out laughing. Jenna turned her face down, feeling a sickly mixture of anger and embarrassment.

"You'd better watch your mouth Kal, 'cause one day you might say something that you'll regret. When that happens, you'd better be prepared to take it back or else," she said before turning on her heels and storming off.

"_Yeah right. I've said a lot of things, but with Steele on my side, I'll never get into trouble,"_ he thought, unaware that in only a year and a half, he would say something that he would regret, but he wouldn't have Steele to back him up. He'd have to find a way to make things right himself, or he'd risk losing a valuable ally.

_

* * *

Present Day_

By now, Balto had been traveling for hours in the still woods. He listened intently for any sign of life, but all he could hear was the sound of birds chirping, and the occasional tree that creaked, _"There's no one around here, but why do I still feel like I'm being followed?"_ he thought, _"I'm probably just being paranoid. I guess years of constantly having to look over my shoulder have really affected me." _He continued trudging through the snow, even though he had no idea how to find what he wanted. For all he knew, the wolf packs in the area were in the opposite direction. Even if he was going in the right direction, there was always the chance that they wouldn't accept him either, _"Still, I have to hope that there's at least some place where I can belong."_ As he walked through the snow, the feeling that there was another presence still remained. A few times he could have sworn that he had heard footsteps a short distance away. However, when he looked around he saw nothing. It was as though he was being stalked… stalked by a predator… stalked by something that knew how to move in the woods quietly… stalked by a wolf.

That was it; he may not have found the wolves, but the wolves had already found him. He knew that making a run for it would only lead them to give chase, so he simply sat down in the snow. If they were following him, he wanted to show that he meant no harm, "Whoever you are, I know you're out there!" he shouted, "I don't want any trouble; I just want to meet you!" His call echoed through the woods, but there was no reply. Finally, he decided to arch his head back and let out a loud howl. Anything within five miles would have heard his howl ring out, but those listening were only five yards away. Within moments, he was tackled by a red-brown blur and knocked to the ground. Before he knew it, he was staring into the amber eyes of a full-fledged wolf.

"Who do you think you are, howling like this place is your territory?" the wolf asked with their teeth bared. The voice was that of a female, and while she held Balto down, more wolves came in to surround him. This was it, the moment that he had been waiting for. He would have to act quickly to show that he only wished to join them, "Well, speak up! What is your business here?" the wolf asked him. He stared straight into her eyes and summed up his courage. He knew who he would have to deal with if he wanted to join them.

"Take me to your leader," he said, "I want to ask him something."


	7. Telling Their Stories

Chapter 7: Telling Their Stories

Balto was escorted by four wolves through the woods until they reached a clearing that had at least half a dozen more, each of them staring at the newcomer. In the side of a nearby hill was a cave that had a small cub poking its head out. Balto figured that was the den for the pack's pups. The red female that had first caught him broke off from the group and entered the den briefly before coming out with a brown male. He was larger than the other wolves, and carried himself with confidence, _"This must be the alpha male," _Balto thought, all the while feeling like this wolf was familiar to him. The alpha approached him and Balto could feel his heart pounding in his chest in anxiety.

"I was told that you wanted to meet me, stranger," the wolf said in a commanding voice, "What is your business here? What did you want to ask of me?"

"I have come here because I wanted to know if there was a place for someone like myself in your pack," Balto replied.

The wolf looked at him curiously and started to walk around him, looking over Balto, as if he was studying him. Balto didn't react, and only followed the wolf with his eyes. Finally, the wolf finished circling him, and seemed to be contemplating something. Soon, a small grin formed on the wolf's muzzle, "So, you thought that you could just waltz in here and ask to join our clan?" he asked, slightly amused. A few of the other wolves chuckled as well.

"Pretty much. I have been trying to find where I belong in this world," Balto replied, "I thought that I might belong with the dogs in the human town, but now, I am not so sure. I thought that I could try my luck with the wolves in the wild."

"Hm, you have been drawn to both the world of the dogs and the world of the wolves," the wolf said, "In most cases like that, it is because the one in question is half and half, unsure of what they are." Balto grew a little more nervous; would they treat him a little better than the dogs in town if they knew he was half dog? "Is that true with you, because you certainly look like one of us," the wolf asked.

Balto hesitated, but he knew that he might get in even more trouble if caught in a lie, so he decided to be truthful, "Yes, it is true," Balto replied, "For so long I rejected my wolf side, thinking I was meant to be with the dogs in town. However, I have recently come to accept the part of me that I pushed away for so long. I've accepted that I am half wolf."

"You rejected your wolf side; could that be why you also rejected our previous invitations?" the wolf asked, catching Balto off guard.

"I don't think I know what you mean," he said.

"Don't you recognize me?" the wolf asked, "I know I recognize you. I was the one who howled for you while out with a couple of my packmates several days ago." At this, Balto now recognized him, along with a few of the other wolves.

The day of the most recent dogsled race, Balto had come home after being picked on once again by Steele and his gang. The taunting only furthered his rejection of his wolf side, and as he approached his boat, he caught a strange scent in the air. He sniffed for a moment before finding out what it was. Standing at the top of a nearby hill were a group of four wolves, led by a brown male. The lead wolf arched his head back and let out a long howl. However, Balto did not reply; he did not want to accept his wolf side, and refused to howl back to them. Seeing that he wasn't going to respond, the brown wolf left with his companions.

Now, Balto was in front of the same brown wolf, this time as someone who had accepted their wolf side, "You… it is you. You were the one who howled for me," he said, a little dumbstruck at this revelation.

"Yes. While some were wary of inviting an outsider, I didn't want to leave you out there," the wolf replied, "You would have been a target for the humans, and enough of our kind have fallen victim to their devices." It was true; in the past, the humans didn't react too kindly to having a half-wolf in their midst. There was one incident in particular in which the butcher had thrown his meat cleaver at Balto's head in frustration, almost taking Balto's head off in the process, "What is your name friend?"

"My name is Balto," he replied, feeling more secure around this wolf, "May I ask what your name is?" he asked.

"My name is Maska," he replied, "It's nice to meet you Balto. Everyone, come say hello to Balto," he called out, and all of the wolves came up to greet him. Most gave him a simple hello, while some also gave him a quick sniff to learn his scent. Even the pups came to meet him, with one nipping at his tail before being scolded by its mother.

"I hope I wasn't too rough with you there," the red-brown female said to him, "I'm Anya by the way."

"It's nice to meet you Anya, and no you weren't too rough with me. I'm a pretty tough guy so it's going to take more than that to rattle me," he replied, causing her to smile.

"Balto, when I last saw you, you seemed to be out on your own; what happened to your parents?" Maska asked.

"Truth be told, I don't know the fate of either of them," Balto replied, "My father was a husky, but I never knew him, and I only knew my mother from when I was very small. She was a snow-white wolf, and I remember her telling me about how my father was a champion sled dog. She said he had gone to somewhere that she couldn't follow. To this day, I have never known what she meant by that."

"It could mean that your father was taken far away," Maska suggested, "Or it could mean that he had been killed."

"However, she always spoke highly of him, so they must have loved each other," Balto continued, "She said that my pop would have been proud of me if he ever saw me. Then one morning, she went out hunting and never returned. I was only a couple of months old at that time."

"My goodness, to have survived on your own without anyone to look after you is astounding," Anya said, "You must have been very resourceful for one so young."

"I was, though I did have some help from a few who took a liking to me," Balto replied.

"Earlier, you mentioned that you had rejected your wolf side for most of your life," Maska said, "Tell us, what caused you to change your mind?"

"Well, that's a bit of a long story," Balto said.

"Ah, but we wolves love hearing stories. It is how we learn about life and about each other," Maska replied, "Everyone, gather around. Our new friend has a bit of a story to tell," he called and the rest of the wolves gathered in a circle, with Balto in the center.

All eyes were on him, but this time it was not out of spite. Instead of the dogs who gathered to pick on Balto, these wolves had gathered to listen to his story; to learn more about who he was, _"I have only known them for five minutes and they're already giving me the chance that most of the dogs never did,"_ he thought, "Alright, this story actually begins shortly after you last saw me," he started, "Several of the human children had fallen ill, and they needed medicine from far away…"

* * *

Kaltag and Jenna continued following Balto's trail, all the while listening for any sound of him. The trail was a few hours old by now; they would have to move quickly if they wanted to catch up with him. At first, they walked in silence, until Jenna finally asked something that had been on her mind, "Kaltag, I want to know something," she started, "During the serum run, you had a pretty quick change of heart. You went from picking on him to helping him in only minutes. What changed? What made him better than Steele?"

"What made him better was that he actually had a way home," Kaltag replied.

"Was that it? You only went with him because he was the winning side that time?" she retorted.

"Not exactly; when you put it that way, you make me look pretty spineless," Kaltag replied, gritting his teeth, "It wasn't just that. It was the fact that Balto cared about the team and the task at hand, while Steele only cared about his glory. He only wanted to help, and didn't ask anything in return. I guess… I guess it was because Balto was the leader that I had always wanted – one who treated us like a part of the team," he paused, "We didn't say it publicly, but we didn't have the highest opinion of our lead dog."

"Really?" Jenna asked with a raised brow, "I find that hard to believe; most of the time you were heaping praise on him."

"We were only doing that because it kept us on good terms with him," he said, "We were on the same team and the last thing we wanted was to have our lead dog turn on us."

"In other words, it didn't matter what you did, as long as it kept your rear end safe," she said venomously.

Her attitude was starting to agitate him, but he tried to maintain his calm, "Look, you don't know what it's like to be on a sled team. There a certain things you have to-"

"All I'm hearing are the excuses of a coward-"

"I AM NOT A COWARD!" Kaltag bellowed, scaring a few birds out of the trees, "Alright, I screwed up yesterday. You don't have to keep rubbing salt in my wounds! So we may have given in to Steele before, but we weren't exactly happy about it," Kaltag continued, "Despite the fact that we were a team, Steele acted like he was the only one that mattered. He rarely listened to us because he saw it as his way or the highway. On the odd occasion that he did, he passed the idea off as his own, not ours. He loved acting like he was the center of the universe."

_

* * *

One year earlier_

There are many reasons for a sled dog to train. Their owner could be a trapper, and need a way to transport themselves and their cargo between their home and the trapline. Their owner could be someone who delivers vital supplies such as meat and mail in between the towns in the north. Or, their owner could be someone like Kaltag's owner; someone who trained dogs so that they could bring glory through dogsled races. Only the best dogs could run the gauntlet that was the Trans-Alaskan Derby, and only one of those teams would win the glory that came with victory. Many had tried, many had failed, and now it was Nikki, Kaltag and Star's turn, as they had finally gained enough experience to run this race.

They had heard the stories from Steele and some of the older dogs on the team, as they had run The Derby many times. They had won for the past two years, and Steele was eager for a third victory. There was a small change from the previous years, as the officials had decided to extend the race from its previous end in White Mountain to their own hometown of Nome. This only added to the team's excitement, as they wanted to be able to return to Nome as heroes, "Yep, we'll be racing back home for this one guys," Steele said, "Let's not disappoint our friends."

It was the day before they were due to depart for Fairbanks, where the race would begin, and the town dogs had gathered in the old mill to wish them well before they left. A large group had gathered around Steele, all wanting to hear his stories from his previous runs in The Derby, while the rest of the team had a more subdued conversation with a few others. It was quite obvious who the real star of the team was, "It must be something, to be on the team, but still on the sidelines," a voice said behind Kaltag. The Chinook turned to see that it was Cain, whom had quietly joined the party with them.

"Huh? What do you mean by that?" Kaltag asked.

"What I mean is that you're nothing but baggage to him," Cain replied, "You've been a part of Steele's crowd for almost two years now - how well has that worked out for you?"

"It's actually worked out pretty well," Kaltag replied sharply, "I'm a part of a champion sled team now, and I'm going to be running the biggest race of the year. Once we win, all of Alaska.. no, the world will know our names."

"Is that how you feel about it, or is it how Steele wants you to feel about it?" Cain asked, "I mean, you are a part of the team, but does he ever thank you guys? Does he ever give credit to your ideas? Does he tell dogs to remember you, or to remember him?"

"Well… he is the lead dog and…" Kaltag stuttered, and Cain looked at him expectantly, "Okay, maybe he does like to take the spotlight a little," Kaltag admitted.

"A little? How about a lot?" Cain replied, indicating to the large crowd around Steele. Kaltag didn't want to say it out loud, but he had to admit that Steele was being a bit of a show off, "Look Kal, I know you're excited about running in The Derby, but I'm going to give you a little heads up. If you win, it won't be your victory, it will be his alone, but if you don't win, it will be your loss, not his. That's the way Steele runs things." Kaltag wasn't quite sure what Cain meant by that, but he decided to not dwell on it. He needed to keep his head clear for the coming race.

* * *

The race started in Fairbanks, and from the second the starting gun went off, Steele and his team gave it their all in their race back to Nome. They wanted to be able to return home as winners, and to do otherwise was unacceptable. The long days of running through the wilderness had gone smoothly so far, but they had only gotten up to second position, something Steele wanted to change as quickly as possible.

"C'mon guys, at this rate the only way I'll win is if I go off and run the race myself," Steele barked.

"Steele, we've been running our best for days," Star replied, "Can't we slow down to catch our breath?"

"If we slow down, we lose any chance of winning," Steele replied, "I'm not going to let myself be slowed down by a bunch of whiny pups, so you will keep moving."

Despite their exhaustion, the team kept on moving, as none of them wanted to be the dog that caused them to lose. So, they continued to push themselves, trying to pull out every ounce of strength that was left in their tired bodies. They were traveling around a grove of trees, and up ahead, Kaltag could see that there was a frozen riverbed that cut through the woods in an east-west direction, while their current path led to the northwest, _"If we follow our current path, we'll take a northern detour, but that river seems more direct,"_ Kaltag thought, _"That could shave some time off the trip and allow us to catch up!" _"Hey boss!" he cried out, "Could that river act as a shortcut?"

"We're sticking to this trail Kal," Steele said.

"But Steele, I think Kaltag might have a point," Star said, "This path is the long way."

"No it isn't; I know it's the right way," Steele said. As they approached, Kaltag still wanted to take the shortcut, and started to pull his harness off the side. He couldn't explain it, but it just felt like the right path. However, the effect of his pull was minimal, due to the other dogs staying on the current path, "Kaltag, stop it! I'm the lead dog, and we go where I say," Steele barked. However, their musher noticed Kaltag's pull, and stopped at the fork in the path. He looked at both paths, and as he did so, a couple other dogs who agreed with Kaltag started to pull towards the riverbed, "What do you think you're doing?" Steele asked.

"We're trying to show our musher where to go," Kaltag responded, and after a few more moments, their efforts paid off, when their owner followed their pull, giving the 'Haw' order to turn onto the riverbed. Steele hesitated, but even he knew that he had to follow his musher's instructions.

"Alright Kaltag, we'll try your plan, but I'll have you know that it wasn't my idea," Steele said, "If this doesn't work out, I'll remember just who to blame for this."

"_If you don't win, it will be your loss, not his. That is the way Steele runs things."_

Steele's threat caused Kaltag to remember Cain's warning, and only now did he start to understand what he had meant. If they lost, Steele would surely blame him for it, because it was his idea. The subordinate would be blamed, while the lead got off free, _"Well then, I guess I'd better not lose,"_ he thought as he continued to run through the snow, _"Besides, maybe it's high time that I got a little attention too."_

Soon, they had followed the river through the grove of trees until it ended in wide open tundra. Only a few dozen yards ahead was what they had been hoping to catch up to. It was the other team; their shortcut had helped them close the gap between them, "It's the other team! Way to go Kal!" Star cried out.

"We're not home yet, so give it all you've got!" Steele barked, and the team obliged, racing ahead to catch up with their quarry. Foot by foot, they closed the gap between them until they were starting to get alongside them. Both teams were on their last legs, but each wanted to win. They had gone through days of rough terrain and cold weather, but there was still one more obstacle to face.

Coming up ahead of them was a narrow path with two sheer cliffs on either side. The path acted as a bottleneck, and was only wide enough to allow one sled to travel safely. This would be the deciding factor of the race; whichever team entered first would have the advantage necessary to win. Steele kept trying to pull ahead, but the sprint to catch up with the other team had drained the other dogs, and they couldn't keep up with him. The other team was feeling the same exhaustion, causing the team's stride to lag, and their tongues to roll out of their mouths. The cliff sides started to angle closer and closer to the teams, but they refused to budge. The narrowing path forced the teams closer together, and soon they were side by side, with the dogs on the other team rubbing into Kaltag's shoulder. The ever decreasing space was starting to make Kaltag and the team anxious; none of them wanted to run smack into the cliff, but Steele wouldn't let up. He was playing a dangerous game of chicken with the other team; a game he intended to win. The other dogs however, were more concerned with their own safety, "Steele, wes aren't going to make it through. Wes have to back off!" Nikki cried.

"NO! We're so close and we're not going to lose it!" Steele barked back.

"Steele, we can't risk it," Kaltag continued, "If we keep this up, our team is going to be the most hurt, the most smashed up, the most broken-"

"We're going to get squashed!" Star cut in, but since he was the dog directly behind Steele, his protest was met by a kick in the jaw from Steele's leg. The rocks crept closer and closer to the teams, and any second, Kaltag expected to feel the brutal punch from running right into them. Fortunately for him, the musher of the other team didn't want to risk it, so at the last second, he slammed on his brakes to slow his team down.

The other team fell back, giving Steele's team enough clearance to get through and take the lead, "Ha! See, I told you we didn't need to slow down," Steele cried out, "Shows how much you know."

"_And yet I knew enough to take the shortcut that got us here," _Kaltag thought bitterly as they continued running the last few miles. The other team had come through the narrow pass as well, but they didn't have enough power left to catch up. They remained behind, without even bothering to take back first place. The marker flares exploded above them as they continued their approach, and as they raced up Front Street towards the finish line, Kaltag was exhilarated. He had not only run through the most treacherous race in Alaska, he had been the one who found the shortcut that allowed them to take the lead and win. As they passed the finish line, the crowd roared for them, as their own home team had returned victorious. A few minutes later, the runner-up team raced in as well, simply happy that they had finished the race in one piece.

"Hey, you ran a really good race back there," the lead husky from the other team said to Kaltag, "How'd you guys catch up to us?"

"Well, it wasn't much," Kaltag started, "I just-"

"I found us a shortcut," Steele cut in, "While you took the long way around, I found a riverbed that saved us some time."

Kaltag felt like he had just been kicked in the jaw; the shortcut had been his idea, not Steele's. The husky didn't even want the idea to be his, "Well, I guess you're lucky to have such a smart lead dog," the other lead continued.

"Wait… but he-" Kaltag stammered

"Yes, and I was the one who didn't give up in that narrow pass," Steele cut in, "And to think that the others wanted me to stop."

The other lead let out a chuckle, "Yeah, you guys sure did give us a run to remember."

"But – hold on-"

"Kaltag, why don't you go off with the others?" Steele suggested, "Your stammering is starting to annoy me." Kaltag said nothing more and simply stormed off to find Nikki and Star, while, his ire towards Steele grew and grew. Steele had acted as though his team never mattered; they were just along for the ride.

"_If you win, it won't be your victory, it will be his alone."_

It was now that he fully realized what Cain had meant; it didn't matter how much they contributed, Steele would always think of it as his victory, not theirs. He would always be in the background, never allowed to shine on his own. This caused Kaltag to start to doubt his choice to stick with Steele. He had given his lead so much praise in return for fitting in, but in all this time, he had gotten barely any in return. It wouldn't matter if they did something that saved the entire town; as long as Steele was in charge, he would always use whatever it took to keep the glory for himself.


	8. New Doubt

Chapter 8: New Doubt

_Present Day_

Balto told his story to the wolves, and while they may not have had as much interest in sledding as the dogs, they were still captivated by the exciting journey Balto had to take to find the team and return it home. Balto told them how he had to face down an angry bear, a stubborn Steele, false pathways, dangerous terrain and a collapsing ice cave to bring aid to those in need. While some scoffed at the idea of helping humans, many applauded Balto's effort. He had done for the human children what any of them would do to save their own, "I was able to return the medicine because I had finally accepted my wolf side," Balto told, almost at the end of his story, "If that white wolf hadn't come to me, I'd still be at the bottom of that cliff, resigned to my own misery. I'd have let Jenna, Rosy and all the other children down if I had ignored that wolf."

"Who was it? Did they tell you their name?" a young black wolf asked.

"No, they just howled with me and then disappeared without a trace," Balto replied, "Even though I didn't know who it was, I couldn't help but feel like it was familiar… it felt like I knew it from somewhere," Balto said. He took a moment to scan the wolves around him and noted that none of them matched the pure white wolf he had seen.

"It came to you out of nowhere, and in your time of need... it sounds like something out of the spirit guide stories from when I was a pup," Anya said.

"Yes Balto, for all you know, there's someone looking out for you," Maska continued.

"I don't know about that," Balto replied, "I've never been one to believe in ghost stories."

"Spirit or not, you got home because of that wolf," Maska said, "Plus, your story can serve as a good lesson for our young ones."

"That is right," an older female agreed, turning towards the group of small cubs that had gathered around her, "Each of you is like Balto in that what you can do is not decided by who your parents were; it is decided by what you want to do, and what your own dreams are."

"Does that mean I can be a bird if I want to fly?" a brown pup asked, causing the group to laugh a little.

"Not exactly kid. It means that your worth is decided by your actions, not your breeding," Balto put in, "Though I must admit, flying around does sound fun."

"Thank you for that wonderful story Balto," Maska said, "You have the bravery of a warrior, but a kind heart as well."

"Thank you Maska," Balto replied.

"Well, listening to a story sure works up a bit of an appetite," Maska continued, "My friends, it is time for us to hunt! We will commemorate this one to our new friend Balto!" he cried out and the wolves barked in agreement, "So Balto, would you care to join us?"

"I'd love to but… I'm not really a hunter," Balto replied sheepishly.

"Not a hunter?" Maska asked, confused, "Surely your mother must have given you lessons as a pup."

"No, she couldn't," Balto replied, "I told you, she disappeared when I was very small, so I didn't get any lessons on hunting from her."

"If you didn't learn how to hunt, then how did you survive?" Anya asked.

"During the summer I could catch fish from a nearby river as they swam by," Balto replied, "However, when it froze over in winter, I had to scrounge for scraps from the town. I tried a few times to chase things down, but my inexperience meant that whatever I was chasing would usually get away."

"You weren't exaggerating when you said your life had been hard," Maska mused, "Hunting is something that we wolves take for granted, so it's hard to imagine how anyone could survive without it."

"There were a few days when I couldn't find enough and went hungry, but I still managed to get by," Balto said.

"Still, if he is going to be a part of our clan, he will need to be able to pull his own weight," a grey-furred wolf put in, "He will have to learn how to hunt like us."

"You're right," Maska said, "Is there anyone who would be willing to help Balto out here? I know it may sound strange to ask someone to teach a full grown half-wolf, but Balto is not a ordinary case."

"I will help him," Anya said, "I can take him out right now to show him the basics."

"Alright; you won't mind if the rest of us go out without you do you?" Maska asked.

"Just as long as you save me some for when you get back," Anya replied, causing Maska to chuckle. The alpha then led his pack away to track down some prey while Balto and Anya went in another direction, "Alright Mr. Hero, from your story, I can already tell that you know how to use your nose to follow a trail."

"Yes, and my ears also work just as well," Balto replied.

"I'm curious Balto; during your story you mentioned a dog named Jenna quite a bit," she started, "Are you two friends?"

"We're more than just friends," he replied, "We love each other, and while I'd love nothing more than to be with her, there are those who'd rather keep us apart."

"Is that why you're out here?" she asked.

"Yes; I thought that I might finally have a chance to be accepted into the town, but they don't seem to want anything to do with me," Balto replied, "I'm still a half-wolf in their eyes, and that provokes fear in most people. While Jenna and I might be able to see each other sometimes, she'd always have to be called away by her human owners."

"But you'd still see each other-"

"Our time would always have to be cut short," Balto continued, "Is that any way to be with someone?"

"Maybe… personally I'd think that it would make the time together more special," she replied, "Besides, you do want to see her again soon right?"

"Yes, I do," he replied, and as he thought about Jenna, he started to doubt his decision to come out here, _"It's great here, but it isn't the same without Jenna,"_ he thought. Just like in his dream, he had started to follow the call from the wolves, only to have the cal from Jenna grow stronger.

"Well, I hope that things do work out with you; you do sound quite taken by her. If it doesn't... you'll still have a place here," she finished, before tapping his muzzle with hers. Balto was a little surprised at her gesture, but decided to not dwell on it. After all, she may just be being nice; a tap on the muzzle didn't mean that she had… that kind of interest in him. However, the pull back towards Jenna still remained, _"No, I just got here. Besides, I might have a better chance with these wolves. They seem more accepting of me despite being part dog. I can have a fresh start and leave all those years of being an outcast behind," _he thought.

* * *

While Balto and Anya were starting their lesson, Maska and the rest of his pack were preparing for a real hunt. As they did, the beta male, Cheyen came over, "Maska, can I speak with you for a moment?" he asked.

"Of course. You know I always value your input," Maska replied, and the two broke off from the main group to have some privacy.

"Maska, don't you think it's a little premature to simply let that half-dog into our pack?" Cheyen asked.

"That 'half-dog' does have a name my friend; it's Balto. While it may seem quick to you, I think that we should give him a chance," Maska replied.

"But why him?" Cheyen asked.

"I am treating him no differently than I would any other stray wolf," Maska replied, "You heard from his story how some of the dogs still refused to give him a chance after his great deed. I'm hoping to do one better for him; someone like him needs a place to belong and to feel safe."

"Alright, but-" Cheyen's next statement was cut off when a smaller wolf came darting towards them, calling out Maska's name.

"Maska! Come quick!" the young wolf cried out.

"What is it?" the alpha wolf asked.

"One of our scouts spotted intruders in our territory," the young wolf replied, "Dogs; two of them."

"Dogs? Are there humans with them?" Maska asked.

"No, just them," the young wolf replied, "They appeared to be following the trail left by Balto and his escorts."

"Following his trail… do you think they have any connection to him?" Cheyen asked.

"I don't know, but I'll deal with them. Cheyen, you lead the pack without me. You three!" he cried out to three other wolves, "You're with me!" The three wolves joined him and followed their leader as he dashed off to intercept the new arrivals.

* * *

Anya had decided to start Balto off with the most basic of basic prey, "Lemmings? Don't you think I could start out on something a little bigger?" Balto asked, "I'm not exactly a small cub you know."

"You're going to start with lemmings because that is how all wolves start out," Anya replied curtly, "Once you can show that you can take them down, then we can move on to bigger things." Balto grumbled a little; he thought that something that small would be far too easy, "Now, I have come to this clearing because I know that there are some lemmings hiding under the snow. The question is, can you find them?"

Balto put his nose to the ground and started sniffing. At first, all he found was the crisp scent of the snow, but in one spot, he picked up something that was hiding underneath. He eagerly dug at it, but before he could reach it, the lemming popped out of the snow and dashed away from him. Balto tried to chase after it, but it darted this way and that, changing direction faster than he could. Finally, it disappeared down another hole in the snow and out of sight, "See, it isn't as easy as you think," Anya said, "Those little buggers may be small, but they're quick on their feet."

"You're right," Balto replied, "So, what did I do wrong?"

"You took too long to strike," Anya replied, "It knew you were digging it out, and that gave it time to escape."

"So I should hit it hard and fast?" Balto asked, and Anya nodded.

"Try again, it hasn't gone far," she said. Balto put his nose back to the ground and soon picked up the lemming's scent a short distance away. Knowing that digging wouldn't help, he instead reared up and slammed his muzzle into the snow, biting down quickly. His move caused him to take in a large mouthful of snow, but his teeth managed to catch something. He pulled back up and found that he had caught the lemming by its tail. The rodent squeaked and thrashed as it dangled from his jaws. Thinking quickly, he put it down and held it with one paw while delivering a fatal bite to finish it off, "Well, your method is a little unorthodox, but it got the job done," Anya praised, "Most wolves use their paw to catch it instead of their teeth."

"Except I'm not exactly like most wolves," Balto replied, causing her to giggle.

"No I guess you aren't," Anya said, "Now, I think it is time to teach you the next important part of hunting."

"And what's that?" Balto asked.

"How to defend your prize," she replied before jumping at him, knocking him off his feet. She tried to hold him down while reaching for the lemming with her jaw, but he grabbed her shoulder in his jaw and rolled away from it. She pushed away from him and got to her feet, with him keeping an eye on her movements. She moved to the left and to the right and he followed her movements, blocking her path. Finally, he let out a low growl, and that was what she wanted to hear. She sat down and he did the same, "Well, you certainly aren't a pushover, that's for sure," she said.

"Oh, I'm a lot tougher than some would think," he replied.

"Well then, are you quick on your feet too?" she asked, "Come get me!" she cried out, before dashing away from him.

"_Am I quick on my feet? Is the sky blue?" _he thought as he gave chase. Anya laughed her head off as she darted left and right, trying to evade Balto. He laughed too and soon he had caught up with her. However, Anya wasn't out of tricks yet, as she stuck out one of her legs, causing Balto to trip. She was quick to jump on him and the two rolled around the field before she pinned him down. By now Balto had been tired out by the chase, so he couldn't put up much resistance.

"Hehe, got you," she said, leaning closer towards him.

"Ya, you got me," he replied, and as he looked up at her, he couldn't help but notice how much she resembled Jenna. She had the same red back and side fur, along with her paler underside. While Anya had the narrower muzzle and larger build of a wolf, the resemblance still remained.

"Heh, you have really nice eyes," she said, smiling.

"Thanks, I get that a lot from-" he would have finished his sentence with the word 'Jenna', but thinking of her and how they used to cuddle together stopped him dead in his tracks. When he realized just how close Anya was getting, he started to become uncomfortable. He squirmed his way out from under her and stood up quickly.

Anya noticed his change in demeanor, "What is it? What's wrong?" she asked.

"I… I just… I need a few minutes, excuse me," he said, and trotted off, leaving Anya very confused. Having Anya that close to him made him feel like he was turning his back on Jenna, something he would never willingly do. He'd never get involved with another female; he'd never be able to forgive himself for it. In fact, this whole endeavor was starting to feel like he was turning his back on Jenna. He hadn't told her where he was going, and she would have wanted to know where he was, _"Oh, she's probably tearing the town down to it's foundations trying to find me," _he thought, _"That is, if she's looking for me in the first place… What am I thinking, of course she'd come looking for me, she's done it before,"_ he thought, remembering how she had come to him when he was being attacked by a grizzly bear.

"_What should I do? Should I stay here, or go back to her?" _he thought, and sat down on the snow, _"Both sides have their ups and downs, but which is more worth it? Which side is better for someone like me?"_

While Balto was off thinking, Anya waited for him until she started to hear the sound of paws running through the snow. Looking to the side, she saw Maska and three others dashing through the snow. However, the rest of the pack wasn't with them, so it wasn't for the hunt, _"What's going on here?"_ she thought, before turning to follow them.

* * *

By now, Kaltag had finished telling his story from his first run in the Trans-Alaskan Derby, leaving Jenna with a new sense of understanding about Kaltag. He had managed to make the call that Steele could not, but that only led the husky to take credit for his idea. As they continued their search, she realized that he wasn't someone who bowed down out of fear, but that he was someone who had been pushed into a corner by an uncaring lead dog, "Kaltag, I'm sorry I called you a coward. You were just trying to make the best of a bad situation," she said as they walked through the woods.

"Thanks, and I'm sorry I yelled at you. You didn't deserve that," he replied, "But now you know what I had to put up with, and what happened when I tried to go against Steele," he continued, and she nodded. He put his nose back to the ground and sniffed, "I can sill smell Balto's trail, but… hang on, it's mixed in with a bunch of others. They all smell like… wolves."

"Wolves? Is Balto okay?" she asked.

"Well, it seems as though he's traveling with the wolves, so I'd say so," Kaltag replied, "Though, I can't tell if he's traveling as a friend or as a prisoner. However, it's relatively fresh - he can't be far off now."

"Really? Balto! Where are you!" Jenna cried out, but she was quickly shushed by Kaltag.

"Watch it Jenna! You can't go shouting around the woods like that," Kaltag snapped, "We don't want to attract the attention of any of the wolves around here."

"Why not?" Jenna replied, "If Balto is around here, then we have to try something."

"I know, but I don't want to have to deal with anyone that might see us as intruders," Kaltag said, "I may not know everything about wolves, but I do know that they can be very territorial."

"But what if Balto is with the wolves? Are you saying that you'll ignore the opportunity to find him because it would mean having to deal with some territorial wolves?" Jenna asked.

"Look, I just don't want to get in any trouble with them," he said.

"But if we ignore this, we'd be turning our backs on him," Jenna said, "He took a big risk to try to find you in during the serum run; probably a bigger risk than we're taking now. He stuck his neck out for you and this is how you're going to repay him?"

"Jenna, stop and think for a moment; we're in unfamiliar territory and we don't know how far there is to go," Kaltag said.

"No, I can't… we've come so far… BALTO!" she screamed out.

"Jenna will you stop - LOOK OUT!" he yelled as he saw something come dashing over the hill. There was no mistaking it; it was a wolf, and it was only seconds away. He tried turning around to evade it, but when he did, he saw that three others had flanked them, cutting off their escape. Panic coursed through him, as he had always feared a confrontation with wolves. Soon they were completely surrounded, and the large brown wolf approached them.

"You're a little out of your territory, dog," the largest wolf growled, "You'd better have a good reason for coming here. Otherwise I'd advise that you leave."

Kaltag's first instinct was to cut hiss losses and run. The wolves were giving him a chance to leave, and if it meant saving his skin, he'd take it, _"That would save myself, but what about Balto? Should I take the chance to try to find him? So much could go wrong… but maybe Jenna has a point… Balto didn't back down when he wanted to help us, and I should do the same," _he thought as he summed up his courage, "We're not leaving here," Kaltag replied, causing the flanking wolves to scowl, "We're looking for a friend and we're not leaving until we know he's okay." Jenna couldn't help but grin at Kaltag's newfound courage; it may have been delayed but it was better late than never.


	9. Mending Fences

Chapter 9: Mending Fences

"Are you sure you want to be so quick to say that?" the alpha wolf asked as Kaltag stared him down, "After all, this is our territory, so we have the advantage."

"I am sure, but I promise you I'm not here for a fight," Kaltag replied, "What's your name?"

"My name is Maska," he replied, "And you are?"

"I'm Kaltag and this is Jenna," Kaltag said, "Look, I know we're not exactly invited here, but we wouldn't be here if it wasn't important. We're looking for a friend of ours; he a wolfdog named-"

"Balto," Maska finished, "Yes, I know who he is. He came to us earlier today."

"Is he alright? Where is he?" Jenna asked.

"He's perfectly fine; in fact I'd say that he's settling in quite well here," Maska replied, before another wolf emerged from the bushes, "Anya? What are you doing here?" Maska asked.

"I came to see what all the commotion was about," she replied, "Who are these dogs?"

"This is Kaltag and Jenna," Maska replied, "They came here looking for Balto. You were just with him right?"

"Yes; I'm sure I can bring him to you," she said.

"Thank you," Jenna replied, "You don't know how much that means to us."

_"So this is the Jenna that Balto was talking about. I'm sure that they'll be happy to see each other... but what if he doesn't want to go back? How will she take it?" _Anya thought.

"However, we can't guarantee that he'll come back with you. He seemed very disgruntled with how some of the dogs had treated him," Maska said, "I think he mentioned you by name Kaltag, but it wasn't in the most flattering light. We'll take you to him, but you'll have to convince him to go with you."

Kaltag felt a pang of guilt at this. He knew that he had a hand in how Balto felt right now, but he had come this far in trying to make things right. He and Jenna followed Anya and Maska through the woods until they found Balto sitting in a clearing, lost in thought. When he heard them approach, he turned, but scowled when he saw that Kaltag was with them. Kaltag knew he shouldn't push his luck, so he sat down a few feet away, letting Jenna make the first move. "Balto!" she cried out as she dashed towards him. His scowl faded when he saw her, and she rushed over to nuzzle him, which he returned with his own.

"Jenna, what are you doing out here?" he asked.

"We came to find you," she replied, "Please Balto, I want you to come home. You don't have to live out here like this."

"I don't know Jenna," Balto replied, "I don't know if I would be able to fit in with the town like you do."

"But what about me?" Jenna asked, "Don't you want to be with me?"

"I do Jenna, and we still can meet. I can still come and visit you," he replied.

"But having to wait for you to come wouldn't be the same," Jenna replied, "It wouldn't be the same as having you only a few minutes away."

"That's the thing; I'd always have to be a few minutes away. I'd never be able to be right beside you. I know it may be tougher, but you said yourself that I should find a place where I belonged, and I think I have found it," he said.

"But I want to be with you," she said, as tears started to form in her eyes, "Is there any other way? Maybe I could stay here with you?'

"I'd like that, but you know you can't ignore your human family," he replied, "Rosy would be pretty upset if you ran away from home."

Jenna knew that he was right, but the thought of Balto being farther away still stabbed at her. She nuzzled into his chest and tried to think of some way, any way to convince him to come home, but nothing good came up, "Are you absolutely sure you want to do this Balto?" she asked, "After all, you don't know much about the life of wolves."

"I may not know much, but they've offered to teach me," Balto replied, "They're still going to give me a chance, the chance I was never given by the dogs in town." Tears started to fall down Jenna's muzzle as she heard this, and Balto softly licked them away, "I'll always have a place in my heart for you," he said, "We'll still see each other, but here, I won't have to deal with dogs like him," he finished, indicating towards Kaltag.

"_I know, but it wouldn't be the same,"_ she thought. As Kaltag heard their exchange, he could only feel for her, as Balto had been one of the most important things in her life.

"Well Kaltag, do you have something to say, or are you just going to sit there like you always do?" Balto asked coldly. The chinook had come this far, and he wasn't ready to give up without trying.

"As a matter of fact I do," he replied as he approached him, "You know, Jenna isn't the only one that wants you back. I want… no I **need** you to come back. I need your help."

"No you don't; the day has already been saved and you're the one in charge now. You already have things nicely squared away in your life, like your good friend Spitz," Balto said, "You don't need me anymore, so why should I come back?"

"You should come back because we're on the same team," Kaltag replied, "A team is supposed to stick together."

"I'm not a part of your team," Balto said, "You and your owner made that clear. Besides, wolves are inexperienced and don't make good sled dogs."

"Look, being a team isn't just sledding together and running races," Kaltag said, "You can think of someone as a teammate simply because you trust them; that's why I'm saying you're a part of my team."

"Oh, so now you trust me," Balto said snidely.

"I always have!" Kaltag exclaimed

"Really? If you did, you'd have been backing me up instead of just joining in the laughter with Spitz," Balto snapped.

"You're right; I should have. I didn't back you up then and I'm sorry about it," Kaltag replied.

"Is that all you came to say; that you're sorry?" Balto asked flatly.

"No, it isn't. You see, you're not the only one needing a little backup right now," Kaltag continued, "Balto, I'm going to honest with you; I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing in terms of being a leader, and while you don't have much experience either, you sure did a heck of a lot better job during the serum run than I'm doing right now. If the attitude of the town is going to be changed, I can't do it alone. Please Balto, I need your help on this. I want to change things, but I'm not sure if I know how," Balto thought this over; while he still had some misgivings about returning to the town, Kaltag did raise a few good points. They had promised to try to start over with each other, and while some of Steele's influence did linger in the Chinook, Kaltag didn't want to let that control him. Plus, there was one thing that made Kaltag vastly different than his predecessor; he was here asking for his help, "Please Balto, I'm asking you to give me another chance."

"It's the truth Balto," Jenna put in, "He may not be perfect, but he still wants to try."

"I – I don't know," Balto replied.

"Why not?" Kaltag said.

"It's – it's just - I don't expect you to understand it; you've never had to deal with what I've gone through over the past couple of days," Balto said.

"That's where you're wrong Balto," Kaltag replied, "I know full well what's it like to feel betrayed by those you trusted."

_

* * *

One year earlier_

Once the celebration from the last race ended, life settled back into its normal routine, but Kaltag was still bitter about how Steele had taken credit for his idea. Steele had shown that he could do a complete personality reversal when the situation called for it, and that led Kaltag to start distrusting his lead dog. However, he wasn't quite ready to share his feelings with his other two friends; he didn't want any news of his attitude to leak out and make its way to Steele. Fortunately, Kaltag did have an outlet to vent his frustration – Balto. After the race, the group went right back to taunting Balto as usual, but something was different about the wolfdog now. For the past few weeks, Balto had started to act much more aggressive than usual, meaning that they had to step up their game as well. No longer content with simply shouting after Balto, Steele had them actively seeking him out to fight him. Kaltag felt his strongest whenever he was with his group of friends, and venting out on Balto allowed him to temporarily forget how Steele treated him. However, Steele would rather stay back while the other three went after Balto. He felt like he didn't need to get his paws dirty, so he ran the show from the sidelines. This pattern continued, with them unaware that Balto's anger was slowly building to a breaking point.

It was a day like most others in that Steele and his trio were running through town, chasing after the wolfdog that they saw as nothing more than a nuisance. They turned into an alley that had a dead end, and Balto turned to face them as they approached, "Alright guys, lets do what we do best with wolves," Steele growled as he sent his trio in front to gang up on Balto. Even without the strength of their lead, they were still three on one, giving them the advantage. However, Balto didn't flinch, instead baring his teeth at them.

"Hey Steele, why don't you fight like a real dog and face me yourself, without your friends?" Balto growled. Nikki, Kaltag and Star just laughed at this. They expected Steele to ignore him, but their lead had other plans.

"Alright wolf, you want me, here I am. You three hang back, I'll be finished with him soon," he said, surprising them. They had been looking forward to knocking Balto around, but they trusted the judgment of their leader, and left the alley.

"Do you think we should stay as backup?" Star asked as they walked down the street.

"Nah, our boss can take care of himself," Kaltag replied, "Besides, he told us to let him take on Balto, so we'll let him."

"And if he can't take care of himself?" Star asked.

"Don't worry, he'll be fine," Kaltag reassured him, _"Though it would mean that I wouldn't have to deal with Steele's ego again,"_ he thought.

"Hey Kaltag, I'd bet you a bone that Balto will last five minutes against Steele," Nikki said.

"Oh really? That's pretty optimistic Nikki. I'd only give Balto three minutes," Kaltag replied, causing the three of them to burst out laughing.

"What are you three laughing about now?" a voice asked a short distance away. They turned and saw that it was Jenna.

"Oh, we're just guessing how long Balto will last up against Steele," Nikki replied.

"Yeah, that half-wolf actually had the guts to challenge Steele one on one," Kaltag continued, "I gotta admit, that's the pluckiest, the boldest, the most daring-"

"He's no cat, that's for sure!" Star cut in, before quickly receiving a blow from Kaltag.

"He what!" Jenna cried out, "And you're just going to let this happen?"

"Uh, yeah," Kaltag replied, "Someone's got to show that wolfdog that he's not welcome." However, Jenna didn't listen to his last statement, as she had darted off to find Balto and Steele and intervene.

"Hey, what's gotten her all upset?" Star asked.

"If it's about Balto, then I don't know why she even cares. C'mon, lets go wait for Steele back home," he said and the trio followed him to their owners home. They expected to see Steele appear at any time, returning triumphant, followed by another one of his long-winded stories of heroism, _"I wonder what Steele will make up this time around; the last story involved levitation, so I wonder how he'll top that,"_ Kaltag thought as the minutes started to drag on… and on. After almost an hour, they finally saw him start to round the corner, but he did not look like a returning hero. The trio gasped when they saw that he was covered in bite wounds, including a gash on his neck. He was barely limping along as his injuries had drained most of his strength. Finally, he collapsed near the entrance of the yard, and the three of them rushed to his side.

"Boss, what in the world happened to you?" Kaltag asked.

"It was… that wolfdog… he sure is a lot tougher than he looks," Steele gasped.

"Star, get help quickly!" Kaltag cried out, and the smaller husky dashed towards the front door, barking his head off to get the attention of the humans.

"I always said… I always said that wolfdog was dangerous. I knew that it would only be a matter of time before he did something like this," Steele said, "For a moment, I actually thought he was going to kill me, but then he ran off before he could finish the job. However, I wouldn't be in this mess if you hadn't run off! Why did you ditch me out there?" Steele snapped, catching Nikki and Kaltag by surprise.

"Hey, we were only doing what you said boss," Kaltag replied, "You told us that you wanted to face him one on one, so we let you. It's not our fault that Balto beat you up!"

"Shut up! I don't want to hear your excuses," Steele spat, "You left me alone with that wolfdog, and look what happened! I hope you're happy about this; I won't be running for a while."

Before Kaltag could launch another protest, Star had returned with their owner, who was shocked to see his lead in such a mess, "Holy hell! What happened to you Steele?" he cried out while Steele whimpered in pain. He bent over to pick him up and carried him inside to give him better care, leaving behind a very incensed Kaltag. They had been ordered away, and Balto was the one who had gone berserk and attacked, and yet Steele was acting like it was their fault. Once again, Steele had done a complete reversal of his personality to push the blame away from himself.

"I don't believe that two-timing dog," Nikki said, "We did as we were told, and yet we still got yelled at."

"Yeah, none of us knew that Balto could be that strong," Star continued.

"_If you win, it won't be your victory, it will be his alone, but if you don't win, it will be your loss, not his. That's the way Steele runs things."_

"Ugh, this is how he's always acted towards us," Kaltag said, "Think about it; from the start, he was always ordering us around and blaming us for his screw-ups. When we did do something good, he would either brush it off or pass the idea as his own."

"Why didn't we see it before?" Nikki asked.

"We were so caught up with the fun of being on a champion team, that we turned a blind eye to how he treated us," Kaltag replied, "Guys, lets face it; our lead dog is big jerk. He may be a champion, but that doesn't mean he's all great."

"But what can we do about it?" Star asked, "We can't tell him; remember what he did to Zeke when he badmouthed Steele?"

"You mean what we did to Zeke?" Kaltag replied, and the other two nodded, "Yeah, I know, but we don't have to end up like him," Kaltag replied, "We could be sneakier; we should be allowed to say what we want when he isn't around."

"What happens if he gets worse?" Nikki asked, "What should we do if he turns on us?"

Kaltag hesitated; he didn't like the idea of having to revolt against the dog that had taken him in and given him a sense of belonging. However, with the way he was going, Steele may become more than just a nuisance for the team - he could become a threat to their very safety, "I - I don't know. We'll deal with it if we reach that part of the road," he replied, "However, I don't want it to come to that unless it's absolutely necessary."

While it may have been a small start, it was a start nonetheless. Kaltag, Nikki and Star had finally taken enough from Steele, and took to badmouthing him whenever he wasn't around. Kaltag didn't know it yet, but this move would be the first of many that would make him transition from a follower into a leader, and from a bully into a friend for someone who wasn't all that different from him...

_

* * *

Present Day_

"I know full well what it's like to not fit in," Kaltag continued, "I joined Steele's gang because it was the easy way to get ahead. Unfortunately, my desire to fit in somewhere made me lose my grip on right and wrong. The fear of being left out was so powerful, and I gave in to it," Balto was surprised at how forward Kaltag was with him. Out of all the time he had known the Chinook, he had never seen him speak with such insight before. Most of the time, he only saw Kaltag kiss up to Steele.

"I – I never knew," Balto replied.

"Well now you do, and I'm telling you to not make the same mistake I did," Kaltag said, "Don't give in to the fear of rejection; go with what your heart wants." Balto looked down at Jenna, still leaning against his chest, and remembered how she had always been the one who gave him a leg up whenever he was down. His heart had always wanted to be with her, and that was what had kept him going through the years.

"If I may say something as well," Maska put in, "From what I've heard here, I think your friend is being very sincere. To have him admit that he was at fault is obviously a sign of trust towards you; trust that you should return."

"You're right, and I do want things to change for the better as well," Balto replied, "But it won't be easy."

"Change is never easy," Maska replied, "Change represents the unknown, and for some it provokes discomfort, even outright fear or anger. However, in order for change to happen, you have to commit to it. It may come slowly, but if you don't do anything, it won't come at all," he said.

"What do you say Balto?" Kaltag said, "Do I still have your trust?"

"Please Balto, you don't have to run and hide," Jenna continued.

Balto thought it over; while he was still nervous about those who still didn't trust him, he was moved by the efforts Jenna and Kaltag had made, "You have my trust Kaltag, and yes, I will come back with you," he replied, before turning back to Maska, "I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to turn down your offer again. There are some who need me much more than you do."

"I understand. In fact, I'm glad that you're choosing your older friends and your love over us," he replied, "We wolves value loyalty very highly, and you wouldn't be honoring your ancestors very well if you turned your back on Jenna and the others."

"So, I guess this is goodbye, even after such a short time," Balto said.

"Well, at least goodbye for now," Maska said, "You may decide to live in town, but you are still part wolf, and you'll always have friends out here. I do hope that you'll come and visit us every now and then."

"I'll see what I can do; between helping Kaltag keep the peace, and spending time with a certain beautiful husky…" he said, causing Jenna to giggle, "…I might not have much free time. What do you think Jenna?"

"Oh, I'll definitely be keeping you busy for the next little while," she said, giving him a wink.


	10. Epilogue

Epilogue

_One week later_

The past week had been a tense one due to some news that came in a few days before. Steele had been found; he had wandered into White Mountain after a few days in the wilderness. It was a day that Balto and Kaltag knew might come eventually, but for once, fate was on their side. Despite having a great love for his lead dog, Gunnar had noticed how his lead dog had started to become a little… unreliable. He figured that it was time to retire Steele from racing, and sold him to a friend he knew in White Mountain. Kaltag told all of this to the dogs at the old mill, and while Steele's diehard fans were a little disappointed, several were happy that they wouldn't have to deal with him in town again, including a certain hybrid who was relaxing beside Kaltag.

"Of course, you know what it also means Kal," Balto started, "It means that your promotion is permanent." By now, it was the second time this week that Balto had come to the old mill, and while some dogs were sitting quite a distance from him due to them being uncomfortable with him, no one objected to having him there. Some had even greeted him warmly when he entered, _"I guess they were right; I just needed give them a little more time to get used to me."_

"I know that, but I'm ready to take on whatever life throws at me," Kaltag replied.

"I'm more worried about what will happen to the dogs over in White Mountain. I mean, they do know who they're dealing with right?" Jenna put in. She had settled herself right beside Balto, leaning onto his side.

"Don't worry, I told them about who they're dealing with, but I also told them to cut him a little slack," Kaltag replied, "He's already been kicked out of one town, and even though he isn't the best guy around, I still think that he should have somewhere to belong. I know all too well what can happen if someone is ostracized to the point of desperation and it's not pretty," he finished, and Balto nodded.

"Just as long as he isn't here, I'm fine," Balto said.

"I must ask, where would you get an idea like that?" Spitz asked. The husky had put himself at the opposite end of the room from Balto, but had stopped complaining about having him around, "You do remember what he did to you guys right?"

"Well, the idea came from my recent experiences," Kaltag replied, "Remember, I used to pick on Balto with Steele only a few weeks ago, but despite that, we gave each other another chance. We may have had some… missteps for the first few days," he said, and Balto knew he was hinting at the previous week's incident, "But now we're going along just fine. Who knows, maybe it'll make Steele a better dog this time around."

The dogs muttered with each other over this new development, but Balto simply smiled in contentment. The events of the last week had only been a small dent in their friendship, and they came out of it better dogs. Plus, he had managed to find some new friends in Maska and his pack. This way, he wouldn't be forced to choose one side over another. He could have friends for both his wolf side and his dog side. Soon, the discussion broke between the different groups, but one dog had decided to come up to talk to Kaltag. It was Cain, smiling at what he had just heard, "Ya did good today Kaltag," he said "After all you've done for Balto and the team this past week, I think I can safely say that the team will be all right with you in charge."

"Thanks Cain, though, it won't be just me in charge," he replied, earning a quizzical look from Cain, "Remember what we talked about earlier, about how Balto was a part of the team too? I think of him as a lead dog as well, and I have ever since he first took up the harness two weeks ago. He's as much a lead as I am; sometimes, he's even more…"

_

* * *

Two weeks earlier_

The rest of the team watched in awe as their great leader went from hero to crazed maniac before their eyes. They had been lost in the mountains, waiting for hours after crashing on a high ledge, though for what they weren't sure; no dog team would dare go out into this storm to look for them. However, that meant that it was up to a stray half-breed that they had spent most of their lives hating, to come to their aid. At first, Kaltag was skeptical about having Balto around, but what he was offering was their only way out of this mess. He had left a series of markers on his way out that could be followed back to Nome. All they had to do was follow him and they would be able to deliver the much-needed medicine to the town.

Unfortunately, Steele was unwilling to take any help from a wolfdog, and refused Balto's advice. He didn't back down, so Steele started to attack him. In his rush to keep Balto away, he had started to knock the medicine crate around. Kaltag may have been on Steele's team, but his lead was starting to become a danger to their mission. Finally, Steele made one more leap at Balto, grabbing onto the bandanna that he had around his neck. He pulled at it, but Balto resisted, and soon the knot came undone. The released force caused Steele to stumble back, right off a cliff. It was final; they would have to follow Balto home.

As they started to get themselves back in their harnesses, Nikki turned to Kaltag, "Hey Kal, are yous sure that we can trust this half-breed?"

"I don't know, but right now, he's our best shot," Kaltag said, "Remember what I said about how Steele may become a threat to us?"

"Yeah, but you didn't have an answer for us then," Nikki replied.

"Well I've got one for you now. We go with whoever is the best for us, and right now, that's Balto," Kaltag said. Encouraged by this, Star picked up the lead harness in front of him and offered it to Balto. He hesitated, but finally climbed in, becoming the new lead dog for the team.

"_I hope my hunch about you is right," _Kaltag thought, _"I hope that I can finally start to set things right…"_

* * *

Spitz, Carla, Zeke, Cain, Smauel, Eric, Maska, Anya and Cheyen all belong to iWolf231 and may not be used in any way without my direct permission.

Balto, Jenna, Steele, Nikki, Kaltag, Star, Doc, Rosy and Boris belong to Universal Studios and Amblimation.


End file.
